


A Dangerous Game

by justanotherfanaccount



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe, Doctor - Freeform, F/M, Illness, Romance, bad boy, star crossed lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-11
Updated: 2020-06-21
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:40:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 40,906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23102617
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justanotherfanaccount/pseuds/justanotherfanaccount
Summary: Sakura Haruno is a first year resident doctor at Konoha hospital that is trying to pay off student loans while juggling her busy schedule. Sasuke Uchiha is a motorbike riding, college dropout that is trying to make his way as a mechanic and look after his ailing mother. Will these two star-crossed lovers get a happily ever after? Or is their relationship doomed to fail?
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Uchiha Sasuke
Comments: 80
Kudos: 233





	1. Chapter 1

The young doctor looked over at the raven-haired man sitting in the examination room, waiting for someone to tend to his wounds. She looked down at the file in her hands—the one he had filled out when he arrived earlier—noting that his injuries were caused from a fist fight. Sakura shook her head. She didn't understand men and their need to hash things out with their fists. Didn't they realize how dangerous fighting was?

The pink haired doctor opened the door of the examination room, her heels clacking on the ground. Her patient glanced up from his place on the table, his features a mask of indifference, undeterred by the wounds marring his face. Despite her need for professionalism, her breath hitched in her throat at the sight of him—and not just because of the cuts and bruises on his face. He was _beautiful._ His dark eyes felt as if they could penetrate right into her soul and the piercing at his eyebrow gave him an unobtainable feel. His whole presence felt dark and mysterious, and Sakura knew right away this was the kind of person that parents warn their little girls about.

Taking a deep breath—and hoping the man in front of her hadn't noticed her staring—Sakura started forward towards her patient. She looked down at the clipboard in her hand, resuming her _I'm a professional here and I am completely unruffled by your handsomeness_ countenance. She glanced once more at the name on the clipboard. “Sasuke, it says here that you got into a brawl with two other men at a bar earlier this evening.” She stated, bringing her eyes up to meet his again. Her gaze landed on his split lip before she moved her eyes to examine the bruise around his eye. “Looks like they did a number on you.” She observed.

“Hn, you should see the other guys.” He replied, his pierced eyebrow quirking at the pinkette.

Sakura rolled her eyes in response to his words. She walked over to the cabinet to retrieve some alcohol wipes to clean around the broken lip and assess if anything more needed to be done. After retrieving the items needed, she returned to his side and stood in front of him, bending over slightly to get a closer look. The young doctor carefully cleaned the cut on his lip, taking care not to apply too much pressure.

“The cut doesn't look too bad now that it's cleaned up.” She observed thankfully, her eyes lifting to look at her patient.

Sasuke's eyes were preoccupied by the doctor's cleavage and Sakura had the sudden urge to slap him for his blatant staring. Instead, she pressed the alcohol wipe firmly against his swollen lip, causing the raven-haired man to wince with surprise, his eyes lifting to meet hers.

“Ouch,” he said with a glare.

“That'll teach you to stare at a woman's assets without permission.” Sakura replied haughtily. She leant back and, satisfied that the patient didn't need any more tending to, turned to throw the wipe in the bin.

“Not that you have much to stare at.” He countered.

It was all Sakura could do from turning around and stabbing him with the biggest needle she kept in the room, despite her sudden desire to. Instead, she turned slowly to face him, her face set in stone as she stared at her patient with sudden loathing. _“Excuse me?”_ She asked, her voice low but dangerous as she glared hotly at the man in front of her. She was about to take a menacing step forward when she noticed the blood growing on his shirt, just below his ribs. “You're bleeding!” She stated, all thoughts of anger fleeing her mind as she once again looked at him as a patient.

“It's nothing.” He answered and stood up to leave, suddenly done with this check-up. 

“It's not ‘nothing’.” Sakura responded, walking forward to put her hand on his shoulder and push him back onto the examination table. “The blood stain on your shirt is growing by the second. Let me see.”

When Sasuke realized he wouldn't be able to escape, he sent the doctor a glare. “I told you it's nothing. I'm fine.”

“You aren't going anywhere until you lift your shirt. I'm taking a look at what's under there, whether you like it or not.”

This time, a growl accompanied his glare, but Sasuke finally complied and lifted his shirt over his head, baring his—very well developed, Sakura admitted to herself—torso to her.

“You've been _stabbed?”_ Sakura asked incredulously. “And you didn't think to inform me of this?”

“No, because it's not important. I've already cleaned it up.” He snapped.

“Well, congratulations. Your patch up job was so bad that you would have eventually passed out from blood loss if I hadn't noticed.” Sakura replied.

After peeling off the horrible attempt of a bandage, Sakura went back to the desk to retrieve some more alcohol wipes. “You're an idiot. You know that, right?” She said as she started cleaning up around the wound. When he didn't answer her, she lifted her eyes to his face, a frown on her lips. “Why would you come to the hospital for a split lip but fail to mention a stab wound? I would think that's much more important. Especially since it needs stitches!” She added once she had cleaned up the wound, taking note of the gaping hole in his stomach.

“Hn,” was his only reply. After a few minutes of silence in which the pinkette didn't think he was going to say any more, he finally added, “If I told you, I would have to fill out a report. I didn't want the hassle.”

The words caused a storm within the young doctor and Sakura levelled a scathing glare at her patient. “You didn't want the hassle? You could have died! Oh, but who cares about that? Better not tell the doctor about my near-death experience because I don't want to be hassled into writing a statement.” Sakura was beyond mad and she didn't even realize why. Who cared if this idiot wanted to get himself stabbed and keep quiet about it? He wasn't hurting anyone except himself.

Unless...

“How are the other two guys?” Sakura asked almost hesitantly. “The ones you fought with. Are they...? You didn't?” Sakura was unable to finish her sentence, her voice suddenly failing her at the thought that he might have really hurt them. Or worse...

Her raven-haired patient rolled his eyes at her worried face. “I didn't kill them, if that's what you were trying to ask.” He stated coldly.

Sakura's cheeks turned a bright shade of pink at his accusation. “N-no, that's not what I meant.” She said defensively, although the thought _had_ , in fact, crossed her mind. “I was just wondering if the other two guys were even worse off than you.”

Sasuke snorted humourlessly but she refused to look at his face again, instead concentrating on closing his wound up with her neat stitching skills. “I doubt it.” He said. “They were the ones with the knife. It was an ambush, after all.”

_This story just keeps on getting better._ Sakura thought to herself with a shake of her head. “Look,” she said aloud, her hands never stopping from their diligent stitch work. “I really don't want to hear more of this incident. Although I would suggest you write a statement about it, especially if you were the victim.” She swore she could _hear_ his eye roll and she couldn't help but roll her own in response. 

“I know I can't make you write one, but I'd strongly recommend it. Those guys should be punished for their actions.”

Sasuke shrugged his shoulders, looking unfazed by her concern. “It's nothing I can't handle.” It wasn't a boast, just a simple statement of facts.

Sakura finally stepped back from her patient, having finished stitching his wound and applying a dressing over the top of it. Her green eyes met his onyx ones and she placed her hands on her hips, giving her patient a stern look. “As long as that ‘handling’ doesn't include violence.” She stated. The start of a smirk pulled at Sasuke's lips and Sakura once again felt the desire to roll her eyes. What was it with bad boys that thought they were the toughest person around?

Turning around, Sakura once again walked over to her desk and pulled a drawer open, grabbing more bandages for the wound. “Here,” she said, holding out her hand to give them to him. “You'll have to change your dressing every day to make sure it doesn't get infected. And I want you to come back here in two weeks so that I can take the stitches out and make sure everything is okay.” She shot the raven-haired man another stern look so he knew she was deadly serious. “I don't care if you don't feel like coming, I want to see you here to make sure you’re healing fine.”

Sasuke took the offered bandages with barely a nod in her direction. After throwing his bloodied shirt back over his bare chest, he left the room with a barely audible “see ya.”

Sakura was so caught up in her anger that the raven-haired man didn't even say 'thank you' that she almost missed the helmet and leather jacket he retrieved from the floor before he exited the room. When she did though, she found that she wasn't at all surprised. _Of course he rides a motorbike._ She thought to herself. _What kind of bad boy doesn't?_

A knock at the door surprised Sakura out of her musings and she glanced up to see her close friend and work colleague, Ino Yamanaka, standing in the doorway. The blonde's long hair was thrown up into a professional bun so it wouldn't interfere with her rounds and Sakura wondered how her friend could make wearing scrubs look stylish. Ino threw her thumb over her shoulder and stared at the pinkette, her eyes wide with appreciation. “Who was that hottie?”

“Forget it Ino. You are way too good for a jerk like that.” She replied, though a smile graced her lips at her friend's words. “That being said,” she added. “Remind me never to fall for a bad boy.”

The two doctors began making their way to the hospital's cafeteria for a quick lunch break. Ino laughed at her pink haired friend. “But you know the bad boys are the most fun.” She grinned wickedly. “If I wasn't currently tied down, I would be all over that hunky piece of deliciousness.”

Sakura snorted a laugh. “Seriously? I honestly don't think I could see you apart from your new man. You adore him.”

“Yeah, I suppose I do.” The blonde doctor replied, sighing happily at the thought of her boyfriend. “He's weird as hell though, I'll tell you that. I mean, his best friend is a dog for crying out loud! How ridiculous is that?”

“I think it's kind of cute, actually.” Sakura replied with a shrug, an easy smile on her lips. “You're just jealous that he spends more time with his dog then he does with you.”

Ino groaned at the thought, knowing it was the truth. “I just wish he would show me even half of the affection he gives to Akamaru.”

Sakura patted her blonde friend on the back comfortingly. “Men are stupid, that's for sure.” She said. “How about after work tonight we go out and get a couple of drinks? Or you can come over to my place and we can watch a movie.”

Ino smiled at her. “Actually, after tonight I think I'll definitely be in need of a drink or two.” Ino suddenly snapped her fingers, her eyes lighting up as an idea came to her. “Kiba's friend Kankuro is throwing a party tonight. We can always go hang out there for a few hours to unwind.”

Sakura's eyes closed blissfully in anticipation. “That sounds great. I just wish we didn't have to get up early for work in the morning so we could really let loose and have fun.”

Ino raised an impressed eyebrow at her long-time friend. “Wow, this is new. Since when did you become the wild one?”

“Since you decided to settle down with your dog loving cowboy.” Sakura replied with a cheeky grin.

The two women reached the cafeteria and stood in line to get their food. After picking a table to sit down at, the pair sat back with their coffee's, glad to finally be off their feet. It wasn't long before they were laughing together, their boy troubles gladly forgotten for the time being as they excitedly discussed what they would wear to the party that evening.


	2. Chapter 2

Sasuke stepped out of the hospital after his appointment, intrigued. The pink haired doctor had looked smoking hot in her outfit and he had to stop himself from ogling her like a creep. He didn't try too hard though, as he still found himself staring at her assets when she was bent over in front of him, checking his wound.

_Why am I even thinking about her?_ Sasuke asked himself with a shake of his head. He threw on his leather jacket, making sure not to move too fast so as not to aggravate his wound, and pulled on his helmet. After putting on a pair of shades, Sasuke hopped onto his bike, straddling it as he turned the key. He pulled his phone out of his jacket and checked the messages, noting one from Naruto and another from his mother.

_You can wait._ He thought, ignoring the text from his best friend. Instead, he opened the one from his mother, his heart squeezing in his chest as it often did when he thought of her.

**Sasuke, I know you're busy today, but please don't forget to come home and see me sometime today. I miss you.**

A stab of regret sliced through him at her words, knowing how much she needed him right now. Sasuke hadn't gone home last night after the fight, instead deciding to crash at Naruto's place. He knew his mother would freak out if she knew what had happened to her son and he hadn't wanted to worry her.  


After tapping back a quick reply saying he was on his way, Sasuke tucked his phone back into his pocket and slid his visor down over his eyes. He revved his engine, his mind once again turning to the pink haired doctor as he took off down the street.

.

.

.

Sasuke walked through the door of his house, a sigh of relief escaping his lips when he saw his mother sitting at the dining table. He placed his keys and helmet by the door and made his way to the kitchen, dropping a kiss to the top of her head on his way to the fridge.

“Did you have a nice time out last night, Sasuke?” Mikoto Uchiha asked, smile lines crinkling around her eyes as she watched him.

“Hn, it was fine.” Sasuke couldn't say anything about it in fear that she would know he was keeping something from her. Instead, he decided to change the subject altogether. “How are you feeling today?” He asked with his head in the fridge. He pulled out a ripe tomato and turned to face the older Uchiha, leaning back casually on the fridge as he took a bite out of the red fruit.

Mikoto frowned at her son. “I told you to stop asking me that. I feel fine. You're too young to be worrying about me.”

“You're too old to be worrying about me, but you still do.” Sasuke countered, an eyebrow raised in challenge. “I'm your son, I'm allowed to worry.” He looked at her seriously. “You'll tell me when symptoms start to appear, won't you?”

“You'll be the first to know. I promise.” Mikoto stood and walked over to her son, planting a kiss to his cheek lovingly. “I'm going to have a nap for a while. Tell me if you're leaving, okay?”

“Okay.” Sasuke watched his mother walk out of the kitchen, a frown marring his features. He knew the symptoms. The doctor in charge had told him the first signs would include tiredness, and she was getting more and more tired as each day passed. 

Sasuke’s phone rang, breaking him out of his reverie, and he pulled it out of his pocket. “What?” He snapped at the person on the other end, not bothering with a greeting.

“Hello to you too, Sasuke.” Naruto—Sasuke's best friend and former roommate—replied. “Did you get my message before?”

“No, I haven't looked at it yet.”

Naruto exhaled loudly over the phone. “Typical. One of our old frat buddies has a friend who is having a party tonight. Do you want to go?”

“I'm not in the mood to go out tonight.” Sasuke replied. Not after the revelation that his mother's symptoms might finally be starting. “Next time.”

“There won't be a next time. Kankuro graduates in a couple of weeks and this is the last party he's having. C'mon, it'll be fun. I can find you a girl too, if you want.” His voice turned mischievous, something Sasuke knew to avoid.

_It might take my mind off things for a while._ He told himself. Out loud he said, “Fine, I'll go. But no girls. I'm sick of you trying to set me up. I'm not interested.”

“Okay, no girls. It'll be a guys' night out. Do you want me to pick you up?”

Sasuke knew if he said yes, he would be the one driving Naruto home afterwards. The blond tended to drink too much. “No, I'll take my bike.”

Sasuke ended the call and took another bit of his tomato. _I wouldn't mind seeing_ one _particular girl tonight._ He mused, thinking back to how her hypnotic emerald eyes had made him crazy with desire.

He sighed and pushed off from the fridge, deciding to have a nap himself before getting ready for the party. Maybe he would take Naruto up on his offer to pick him up—he felt in need of a drink or two.  
.

.

.  
“I can't believe you made me wear this dress.” Sakura moaned to her best friend while simultaneously trying to discreetly pull the fabric down, despite knowing it wouldn't budge further than its already mid-thigh length. She glanced around the packed house, already wondering when she would be able to go home. _Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all,_ she admitted to herself.

Ino waved her complaints away, looking gorgeous as usual in a very sleek looking purple cocktail dress. “Quit your whining. You look drop dead delicious, so just enjoy the attention.”

Despite how uncomfortable she felt, Sakura still managed to grin at her friend's words. “'Drop dead delicious'? Is that one of your new sayings?” She teased.

“I call it the three D's.” Ino replied, sending the pinkette a grin of her own. She eyed Sakura's short black party dress before sending her a wink. “Seriously girl, you look hot. Relax.”

Sakura let a sigh slip through her lips, her friend's words not helping as much as she probably thought they did. Glancing around the room again, she noticed the large group of people dancing together in the living room. What she wouldn't give to be able to loosen up and dance away her tension. She had known she would be busy after becoming a resident, but Sakura had to admit that she hadn’t been one hundred percent prepared for it after finishing her medical degree. Her schedule, busy as it was when she in college, had tripled since she became a resident. Sakura was due for a little relaxation time.

“Don't you think this party is a little too 'college frat' for you?” Sakura asked, a new thought entering her mind. “We're adults now. Where's the sophistication?”

Her blonde friend only snorted in response. “Honey, that's because this is a college frat party. Kiba's friend started college late. Didn't you see that we passed the college two blocks back?”

“Yeah, I saw it. I just didn't realize we were still in that kind of crowd.” Sakura said defensively. She hadn't been a huge partygoer even in her college days, and now that she was twenty-five, she was even less thrilled to be there.

“Aw, that's exactly the reason I didn't tell you it was a college party. I knew you'd want to bail on me.” Ino pouted, puppy eyes trained on the pinkette. “Can't we stay for just a little while, at least?”

Sakura could only give in when she saw her friend's baby blues imploring her. “Of course we can stay for a while. I wouldn't want to ruin your fun.” A person caught her eye and she pointed towards the living room, where a brown-haired man was laughing with a mate of his. “There's Kiba. Why don't you go and say hi?”

“No way. This is a girls’ night, remember? We're sticking together. Besides,” She added with a flippant shrug. “He's still in the doghouse for treating his mutt better than me.”

The girls shared a laugh and decided to find the kitchen where they knew the alcohol would be kept. Sakura was more of a vodka girl herself, but if beer was what they were serving, then beer was what she would drink. Before they even got halfway to the kitchen though, Ino let out a loud gasp and grabbed Sakura's arm in a vice grip, making her wince.

“What is it?” Sakura questioned, her heart quickening slightly at the look on her friend’s face. Ino was pointing in the direction of her boyfriend, her mouth agape. Sakura looked over her shoulder and noticed a long, red headed bimbo attaching herself to Kiba's arm. “Who is that?”

“Tayuya.” Ino practically spat the name, her eyes turning to slits as the glared at the red head across the room. “She works at the music centre across the road from Kiba's veterinary clinic. He told me that they sometimes bump into each other at the coffee shop nearby when he's on his lunch break.”

“Stalker,” Sakura joined her friend in glaring at the bimbo across the room, ready to have Ino's back in case the blonde wanted to storm over and rip the girl's arm off her boyfriend. She couldn't hear what they were saying because of the loud music, but Sakura noticed how Tayuya tried to shuffle closer to Ino's boyfriend, her eyes fluttering flirtatiously in his face. Kiba yanked his arm away from the woman and Sakura thought she could hear his firm “no” despite the music blaring around them. Without even realizing it, the two women had sidled closer to Ino's boyfriend and the intruder, and Sakura could just make out what he was saying to her.

“I've told you before Tayuya—stop it. I'm not going to cheat on my girlfriend, so stop trying to make me!” Kiba said, stepping back out of the red head's grip. A new song came on—louder than the previous one—and Tayuya's reply was drowned out, but Sakura saw the withering glare she shot at him before she stamped her feet angrily and stomped away.

Ino turned to Sakura, her eyes shining with tears. Sakura knew what she wanted without her even having to say anything, and the pinkette nodded her assent, a smile on her lips. Ino's grin was so wide Sakura was afraid her face might split apart, and the blonde pulled her into a quick hug before running over to her boyfriend and flinging her arms around his neck. Sakura watched as his face turned from one of surprise at seeing her to a smouldering grin when she kissed him square on the mouth. He held her above the ground and kissed her back fiercely, his hands gripping her butt for support.

Sakura decided she had seen enough of the affectionate display after Kiba turned around and pinned his girlfriend against the wall of the living room, seemingly oblivious to the people around them, and she resolved once again to find that drink she had been looking for earlier. She resumed her walk through the house and had just spotted the kitchen when a blond haired man sporting a ponytail blocked her path.

“Haven't seen you here before, yeah.” The man stated, giving her little black dress a once over. He seemed to approve because his eyes were gleaming excitedly when he looked her in the eye again. “You here with anybody?”

“Yeah, actually, I am.” Sakura replied, not specifying that it was a friend and not a guy that she had come with. She had to resist the desire to roll her eyes at the man in front of her. Did he really think she would be interested?

The man made a show of looking around him, his eyebrows quirking at the pinkette. “Well, he's not doing a very good job at looking after you. Let me get you a drink, yeah.”

Sakura shook her head and reminded herself to be nice. “No, thank you. I can get my own drink.” She started to turn away, but the man moved into her path again, a—what she was sure he thought was flirtatious, though she didn't see it as such—smile on his face.

“Name's Deidera. Nice to meet you, yeah.” He drawled, sticking his hand out for the pinkette to shake.

“That's nice.” Sakura replied, rejecting the offered hand. “I have to go. Enjoy the party.” Again, Deidara tried to stop her and Sakura had to stop herself from glaring at him. “Look,” she said with a huff. “I'm not interested, okay? But see that girl over there, the one with the red hair?” She pointed to where Tayuya was still sulking in the corner of the living room, her face stuck in a permanent scowl. “She just got rejected and I'm sure she wouldn't mind if a handsome stranger went over and swept her off her feet.”

Deidara turned his head in the direction of the red head and his face lit up in a grin. “Don't mind if I do, yeah.” He said before taking off in her direction, a determined spring in his step. Sakura shook her head at how easy it was to turn the blond's attention to somebody else. Shrugging her shoulders, the pink haired doctor continued her search for a drink, having decided she was well deserving of one by now.

She had only taken a couple of steps when she was interrupted by a person stepping into her path again. Sakura let out a loud groan. “What is it this time?” She snapped, her eyes having to crane upwards to look them in the eye.

“Great to see you too, doc.” Sasuke replied blandly, a wry smile on his lips as he gazed down at her. His eyes wandered to the dip in her dress just above her bosom and Sakura didn’t fail to notice the heat that flashed in their depth.

“Sasuke? What are doing here?” Sakura asked, surprised. “You've got a stab wound! You're supposed to be resting until it heals.”

Sasuke shrugged a shoulder, unfazed at his injury. “It's not that bad.”  


“You really are an idiot, aren't you?” She huffed angrily. “If you pull those stitches out it's only going to make more work for me.” She held up her hand, cutting off whatever he was about to say next. “Whatever, I don't care. Tonight is my night off and I'm supposed to be having fun. If you'd excuse me, I still haven't gotten myself a drink yet.” Sakura went to step around him but the bigger man didn't budge. _Are all men clueless when it comes to rejections?_ She wondered frustratedly.

“I didn't peg you for the partying type.” Sasuke kept glancing at her chest, letting his gaze linger there before focusing on her face again.

Sakura gritted her teeth against his obvious staring, though a part of her silently thrilled at having him check her out—especially after his comment in the examination room earlier that day. “I'm not.” She replied shortly. “But my girlfriend and I decided we wanted to have a girls' night out.”

“Oh? Where is she now?” He raised an eyebrow at her as if he knew exactly what had happened.

Sakura gave him a sour look. “With her boyfriend.” She retorted.

A smirk touched at his lips, his smugness palpable. “So much for a girls' night out.”

Sakura sighed in defeat—she knew he was right. The only reason she had come tonight was to have some fun with Ino, and since her blonde friend wasn't with her anymore, what was the point? Suddenly all Sakura wanted to do was go home, pour herself a nice glass of wine and snuggle up in bed with her latest book. “Yeah. You know what,” she said, taking a step back from the dark eyed man in front of her. “I think I'm just going to go home. I have to get up early for work in the morning anyway.”

Sasuke cocked his head slightly to one side and Sakura noticed the end of a tattoo creeping out from underneath his shirt. “Sure you don't want that drink first before you go?” He offered.

She shook her head, her mind focusing on what that tattoo could be of. She had been so engrossed in stitching his wound earlier that she hadn't even noticed a tattoo on his person. But now, suddenly, she wondered just what was hiding under that black shirt of his. “I'm fine. I'll pour myself a glass when I get home. And no, before you ask, I don't need a lift. You shouldn't even be riding with stitches in your side.”

“I wasn't planning on asking you.” Sasuke replied, his pierced eyebrow once again raised in amusement. Sakura flushed under his gaze, wondering if he knew the piercing made him even more attractive. “And stop complaining,” he added, folding his arms across his chest defensively. “I'm fine.”

This was something Sakura could handle—a stubborn patient. “It's not complaining.” She countered. “I'm a doctor, it's part of my job to worry about patients.” _What do I care?_ She asked herself. _If he wants to be a reckless idiot, just let him._ “Fine, do what you want. Just make sure you see me in two weeks so I can take the stitches out.”

“Sure thing doc, whatever you say.” Sasuke smirked again, one that told her he was up to no good.

Sakura resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “Whatever. I'm leaving. Try and stay out of trouble, okay?” She turned and walked away from the raven-haired man, more than ready to go home and pour herself a drink.

She walked out of the building and called the cab company to come pick her up. While she was waiting for a taxi to arrive, she left a message on Ino’s voicemail saying she was going home early when the blonde didn't pick up. Sakura let out a heavy sigh, glad to be going home despite not even being out for an hour. Her mind wandered to her dark eyed patient and she frowned, recalling that last smirk he had given her.

_Why do I have the feeling he isn't going to show up for that appointment?_


	3. Chapter 3

“I really appreciate you taking the day off work so you can come with me to the hospital, Sasuke.” Mikoto Uchiha said to her son, a happy smile on her face as they walked through the front doors of the huge building.

“Of course.” Sasuke grunted in reply. There was no way he would miss this check-up. The only annoying thing about it was he was also due to return to the hospital to have his stitches taken out. Sasuke had managed to hide his injury from his mother these past two weeks, and he hoped he didn’t run into a troublesome pink haired doctor and have her ruin everything.

The hospital was busy, and they had to sit in the waiting area until Mikoto’s doctor could see her. She had started showing symptoms of her illness, and the doctor wanted to start treatment right away, before things escalated and became worse. Sasuke just hoped that the treatment didn’t come with unwanted side-effects.

A very attractive blonde walked past, her high heels click-clacking on the tiled floors as she made her way close to where Sasuke was sitting. He caught her eye and she paused, her ice blue orbs widening in recognition before she turned and scurried down the hallway with renewed vigour.  
Sasuke did not like her reaction. Not one bit.  
.

.

.  
“Sakura! Sakura!” Ino whispered loudly as she stepped into the on-call room where she knew the pinkette was resting. “Sakura, wake up!”

Said woman groaned in response, annoyed at the interruption. “What do you want, Ino?” Sakura asked, sitting up in the bed she had been using to take a nap.

Ino’s eyes shone with excitement, a grin plastered to her face. “Guess who I just saw!” She told her friend, practically jumping on the spot.

Why did she always have to make things difficult? “I don’t know, Ino. Did a celebrity come in for a check-up?”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Sakura.” Ino replied with a roll of her eyes. “You would have heard me from the lobby if I had seen someone famous. No, it’s even better than that. I just saw a certain motorbike riding, dark haired hottie who I think you are going to want to see.” Her grin grew wider and she waggled her eyebrows at her friend.

“Sasuke’s here?” Sakura didn’t even bother to hide her surprise. She didn’t expect to see him again—was certain he wouldn’t come back to get his stitches out. She frowned. “Does he have an appointment? I don’t have him on my list of patients to see.”

Ino shrugged. “I don’t know. He was sitting next to an older, pretty woman, so maybe he is here for her?” She guessed. “But since he’s here, you should go see him. You still have time before you’re meant to be on duty.”

Sakura thought about it. If she didn’t make sure Sasuke got his stitches out today, who knew what would happen. It could cause a nasty scar if the stitches were left in for too long. “Okay. Where did you see him?”

“Out by the waiting room. Oh, and maybe you should keep the door to the examination room open while you’re treating him.” She added, her grin turning wicked. “You wouldn’t want to be tempted to fraternise with a patient now, would you?”

“Ino!” Sakura blushed beet red at her implications and stormed out of the room, her friend’s laughter following her down the hallway.  
.

.

.  
She spotted him, sitting next to an older dark-haired lady, just as Ino had said. The lady was pretty, and Sakura could see smile lines around her eyes, even from a distance. But she also noticed how the woman seemed to be paler than she was supposed to be, and she looked frail. She was obviously sick.

Putting that sad thought aside, Sakura made her way to where the couple were sitting, determined to see Sasuke. He was a stubborn idiot and thought he was invincible, but Sakura wasn’t intimidated. He was going to obey her as his doctor, whether he liked it or not.

“Sasuke, I’m glad to see you made it for your check-up.” She said as professionally as she could, keeping a triumphant smile at bay.

The man looked up at the sound of her voice, his eyes widening slightly at seeing her. He glanced at the woman beside him quickly before pinning his gaze on hers again. “You’re mistaken. I don’t have an appointment today.”

The older woman placed her hand on his, giving it a gentle pat. “You must mean me, dear.” She told the Sakura. “Sasuke is here to accompany me on my appointment.”

Sakura smiled sweetly at the lady. Going by their looks, she guessed the lady was his mother. “Im sorry, ma’am, but may I see him for a few minutes?”

“Sasuke,” the older woman turned to her son, a frown on her lips. “What’s going on? Why does this pretty doctor want to see you? Do you know each other?”

“Like I said, she is mistaken.” Sasuke sent the pinkette a glare, a silent threat for her to be quiet.

Sakura just smirked in response. So, he didn’t tell his mother? “Actually Mrs. Uchiha, Sasuke came in here a couple of weeks ago after getting into a fi—”

Sasuke stood suddenly, his glare heightening on the doctor. “Sorry mother, but it seems we need to talk for a moment after all. I’ll be back soon.”

They walked together, with Sakura leading the way, until they made it to an empty examination room. Sakura waited for him to enter before she shut the door, Ino’s advice coming to her mind momentarily before she shooed it away. “Sit.” She told him, pointing to the hospital bed in the middle of the room. “And take off your shirt so I can examine the scar.”

She busied herself, getting the necessary supplies, and was surprised upon turning around to see the raven-haired man standing there, arms folded, a glare still plastered on his face. “Don’t ever do something like that again.” He looked mad, but Sakura remained undeterred.

“Do what?” She asked, cocking her head to the side innocently. “Talk to my patient about his injury?”

“Mention anything about my injuries in front of my mother.” He snarled, taking a menacing step closer. “She has enough on her plate as it is. I don’t want her worrying about me.”

Sakura responded by shooting him a stern look, her hands on her hips. “Then maybe you shouldn’t do things that make her worry. Now sit.” She pointed again, ready to stare him down for as long as it took.

It lasted longer than Sakura had anticipated, Sasuke looking more and more riled up as the seconds ticked by while Sakura remained calm, an eyebrow cocked at his behaviour. Finally, with a grunt of frustration, Sasuke turned and sat on the edge of the bed, ripping his shirt over his head as he did so.

“See, that wasn’t so hard now, was it?” Sakura smiled sweetly, ignoring the angry look he continued to shoot at her. She stepped closer to him and poked at his scar, humming happily to herself at seeing how nicely it had healed. “Looks like the stitches are ready to come out.” She told him. 

Her eyes trailed upwards from his injury until they landed on his chest. _How the hell did I miss this last time?_ She wondered, taking in the tattoo painted on his chest. It was of a tree, its branches fanning out over his ribcage. Each branch had a name written on it, and Sakura realized upon closer inspection that it was a family tree.

She didn’t realize she had been touching the painted ink on his chest until a throat cleared, snapping her out of her trance. She stood up abruptly, a blush on her face, and turned to get the scissors and tweezers. She took a moment to school her features before turning back to her patient.

“Right. Are you ready?” She asked. Instead of replying, Sasuke grabbed her wrist and pulled her in close, his other arm wrapping around her waist to hold her still. “Sasuke, what are you doing?” She surprised herself by how calm her voice came out, which was a far cry from her inward monologue.

“Payback.” He replied nonchalantly. “For touching me.”

Sakura tried to push him away from her, but he wouldn’t budge. “That was for medical reasons.”

“Didn’t feel like ‘medical reasons’ to me, doc.” He countered, placing her hand back on his chest. “I’m pretty sure you were just feeling me up.”

Sakura’s face was on fire and she pulled her hand back, trying once again to free herself. He let her go, both her wrist and waist, so suddenly that she stumbled backwards. He didn’t try and catch her, and Sakura fell, landing on the cold floor with a grunt. She stood, shooting him a glare, but moved back to where he sat and pulled up a stool so she was at eye level with the stitches. She couldn’t let him get to her. 

“Stay still. This won’t take long.” She went to work, taking out the stitches one by one, her head bent over as far as she could go to hide her burning face. He had done that to humiliate her. If she weren’t a doctor and he a patient, she would have retaliated by hitting him already.

It only took a few minutes, and then Sakura was leaning back, her work complete. “All done.” She told him. The sooner he was out of this room, the better. But before she could stand, he wrapped his hand around her neck and pushed her face towards his, stealing a kiss. Sakura squeaked and pushed against his chest. “What the hell was _that_ for?” She demanded, glaring hotly at the smug Uchiha. 

Sasuke licked his lips, a smirk on his face. “Sweet.” He murmured. He stood up, as if he had not just assaulted a doctor, and pulled his shirt over his head. He walked towards the door and turned around to wink at the pink haired doctor, who was still standing there in shock. “Thanks for the treat, doc.”

Sakura watched him leave, absentmindedly lifting a shaky finger to her lips. The kiss was unexpected, but she couldn’t deny that it had been unpleasant. She wondered about their constant ill-fated meetings. Would she see him again? Or would that be the last time the infuriatingly intoxicating man walked into her life?


	4. Chapter 4

Sakura was on her way home the next weekend after visiting her parents. They lived a few towns over, and she tried to make a point to go see them as often as her busy schedule allowed her to. Which, as it turned out, wasn’t nearly as often as she would like.

It was drizzling on her way home and her old Ford Laser struggled to keep up with the countless other cars on the freeway. Sakura loved seeing her parents, but she hated driving to and from their place in her vehicle. The young doctor had been wanting to replace it for a long while now, but she couldn’t afford it—not with her student loans, rent and countless other bills coming out of her account each month. It was hard enough just to put food on the table.

A loud bang sounded and the car started to shake violently, the wheel violently pulling itself to one side. Sakura screamed in fright, not knowing what was happening, and she struggled to keep the car in her lane. She managed to slide to a stop on the side of the road, her heart hammering in her chest at what could have very easily ended in a dangerous situation. 

Sakura didn’t want to get out of the car—not with so many vehicles tearing past her at such high speeds—but she needed to know what had happened. She stepped out carefully, making sure she had plenty of room to do so safely, and spotted the damage almost immediately. The front left tyre had blown, the pieces of rubber now strewn haphazardly across the freeway.

“I really don’t want to deal with this right now.” The pinkette groaned. Sakura didn’t know how to fix a tyre, and even if she did, she wouldn’t feel safe doing it here. “First of all,” she muttered to herself, making her way back to the driver’s side door. “Get in the car and call for help.”

She did so, but the towing company said they wouldn’t be able to get to her for at least an hour, and Sakura really didn’t want to wait that long. It had been a long day and she just wanted to go home. Sakura decided to check for any nearby mechanics that she could drive to and ended up finding one close to the next exit. _It isn’t really safe to drive with a blown tyre._ She reminded herself. But what else could she do?

Sakura had just rested her forehead against the steering wheel with a sigh when she heard a vehicle pull up behind her. Two men stepped out of the huge four-by-four, looking quite frightening with their tattoos and skull singlets, and Sakura decided she didn’t want to stick around to find out if they were friendly or not. She knew it was wrong of her to judge by appearance, but she didn’t want to deal with them in her exhausted state if they did prove to be unsavoury characters.

Before the two men had made it to her window, Sakura floored her poor Laser and sped off, feeling the constant thunking of the destroyed tyre with each rotation. _Let’s just hope the mechanic is still open by the time I get there._  
.

.

.  
The sun was low on the horizon by the time Sakura pulled into the mechanics driveway, the sky lit up with brilliant oranges and reds. The young doctor wasn’t in the mood to admire the beautiful sunset though. It had taken her a lot longer than she would have liked to arrive, having had to drive in the slow lane the whole way.

Thankfully, much to her delight, it seemed as though the mechanic shop was still open. She could see a man working on a car in the workshop, his head bent over the open bonnet as he worked on the engine. He turned around upon hearing the old Laser pull up, but he was too far away for Sakura to make out any features.

“We’re about to close for the day.” He called to her as she stepped out of her car, but he stopped what he was doing and started walking towards her.

“I’m sorry, but it’s an emergency. One of my tyres have blown and I don’t know how to— _You!”_ Sakura’s mouth fell open as soon as the dark-haired man’s face came into focus.

“Hey, doc. Didn’t think I’d see you here.” Sasuke’s voice was smooth, his eyes only hinting at surprise at seeing her standing there. As he reached her, he allowed his gaze to glance over her knee length, flower printed skirt and white T-shirt before settling back on her face with a smirk. 

Sakura couldn’t stop gaping at the man in front of her. She had already convinced herself that she wouldn’t see him again, so why were they meeting again? “Sasuke? What are you doing here?”

He raised an eyebrow at her question, his smirk still in place. “What does it look like? I’m working.” He held up a greasy rag as if to emphasise his point.

Sakura flushed, feeling silly. “Yes, I can see that. I just… didn’t expect to see you here.” _I didn’t expect to see you at all._ She added mentally.

“So, what’s the problem?” Sasuke moved to inspect her car, taking his time as he walked around the ancient vehicle. He lent down and inspected her tyre. “You drove here like this?” He asked, looking up at her with a raised eyebrow. 

Her flush deepened and she shuffled her feet together in embarrassment. “Yeah. I didn’t want some stranger pulling over on the freeway to help me change it.”

Sasuke had turned back to the tyre but his head shot up at her words and he sent her an incredulous look. “You drove like that on the freeway? Are you an idiot?”

“Shut up!” Sakura was already feeling bad enough as it was; she didn’t need this man’s condescending attitude to make her feel worse. “Can you please just fix it for me so I can go home?”

“Sure thing, doc.” Sasuke made his way to her boot and pulled out her spare tyre, his lips pulling down into a frown upon seeing it. “When was the last time you checked your spare?”

“Um, never?” The way he was looking at her made Sakura want to crawl into a hole. Could she be any more embarrassed?

Sasuke shook his head with a sigh. “You really _are_ an idiot. Wait here.” He made his way to the workshop, spare tyre in hand. He emerged a few minutes later, carrying two new tyres, and Sakura had to tell herself not to stare; he was obviously in peak physical condition to be able to make carrying them look easy.

He threw one of the tyres into the boot before kneeling on the ground beside the damaged wheel. Sakura watched him as got to work, jacking the side of the car and loosening the lug nuts so he could take the damaged wheel off.

“How’s your mother?” Sakura asked, feeling the need to say something in order to take her mind off her embarrassment.

“That topic is not up for discussion.” He replied, taking his eyes off his work to shoot her a glare.

Sakura folded her arms across her chest and leant against the side of the car, glowering back at him. “If you’re not going to tell me I can easily look up her file.”

“Don’t go sticking your nose into my family’s business.” He pulled the damaged tyre off and glanced at her, his glare fading into something more thoughtful. “You think you could come here and help me out for a second, doc?”

Sakura decided to let it go for now. She didn’t want to make him mad when he was helping her out like this. Besides, he was right; she had no right to pry into his business. “What do you need?” She asked, moving closer to where he knelt.

“Nothing. I just wanted to distract you. Plus, the view is nice.” He grinned up at her, eyes dancing in amusement.

It took her a second to realize she was standing close enough for him to peek up her skirt, and she stepped back with a gasp. “Pervert!”

Sasuke just chuckled in response and finished attaching the new tyre. He stood, wiping his hand on the dirty rag. “All done. I should probably check your oil before you go. You don’t seem to know how to look after your car properly. Who knows when you’ll break down next from vehicle negligence?”

“Hey, I know how to check the oil!” The pinkette protested, feeling the need to defend herself. “I know the basics, okay. As long as my car gets me from point A to point B, then that’s all I need.” She wasn’t completely clueless when it came to cars.

“Yeah, even if you have to get to point B with three tyres. Real smart, doc.” He raised an eyebrow at her. “You obviously don’t know the basics if you can’t even change a tyre.”

“It’s not like I have anyone in my life who could teach me.” She retorted.

“Your father never taught you?”

Sakura snorted. “Believe it or not, but my dad knows less about cars than I do.”

That statement didn’t seem to surprise him. “What about your boyfriend?”

“Please, like I have time for a boyfriend.” She barked a laugh before realizing how pathetic that made her look.

Sasuke shrugged. “You want me to teach you, then? It won’t take long.”

Before Sakura could reply, a man stepped out from the workshop and yelled for Sasuke to help him close up shop. “Um, thank you for the offer, but it looks like you’re needed elsewhere.” 

“Next time, then.” He said it so casually, as if he was sure there _would_ be a next time. 

Sakura started to flush under his gaze. “How much do I owe you? I should pay so you can get back to work.”

“For you, doc, it’s free of charge.” He replied with a dismissive wave of his hand. His eyes hadn’t left hers once, not even when his workmate had called out to him, and Sakura was feeling unsettled by those obsidian orbs.

“I can’t accept that. I need to pay you for your work.” Sakura leant into the car to get her wallet, needing a break from their impromptu staring contest. 

“In that case, how about a date?”

Sakura’s eyes widened at his question and she pulled herself out of the car door so fast she hit her head. “What did you say?” She asked, eyes like saucers as she stared at him. Surely, she heard wrong. 

Sasuke chuckled at her response. “Don’t look so frightened, doc. It was a joke.” He took a step back and pointed towards the workshop. “I have to help the boss close up. Don’t worry about payment.” He flicked a hand out in goodbye as he turned around. “Drive safely on your way home, doc.”

“Y-yeah. Thanks.” Sakura stood rooted to the driveway as she watched the raven-haired man walk away. She had definitely heard correctly—he had asked her out on a date. But then he said he was joking. Sakura shook her head and got into her car, trying to still her pounding heart. As she drove away, she couldn’t help the feeling that he had been serious about that date after all.


	5. Chapter 5

Work went on as usual for Sakura. She spent the majority of her time at the hospital, seeing patients and assisting with the med students that were assigned to her department. She couldn't complain though—this had been her dream for a long time; she just hadn't realized just how exhausting it would be.

Sakura had spent days pondering over Sasuke's question, wondering if he had really meant it or not. They had met by coincidence a few times already, so who was to say they wouldn't see each other again? But Sakura had to remind herself that he was dangerous—she had known that from the first time she had seen him. He was bad for her, and Sakura knew the best thing for her to do would be to keep her distance.

In the end, Sakura had to force herself to stop thinking about the raven-haired man. She kept her mind occupied with her work and her patients, and she was doing surprisingly well until her superior asked her to see a Mrs. Uchiha on their behalf, since they would not be available for the appointment. Sakura had to look up the older lady's file—feeling only slightly guilty towards Sasuke for doing so—to familiarise herself with the patient's condition and what they would talk about during her appointment.

Sakura's heart lurched at the information presented before her. She knew the woman was sick—anyone with eyes could see that—but to know the reason behind her illness made Sakura want to cry. Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia was a disease Sakura had little experience with, but she knew that it was dangerous. Thankfully, it seemed as though her doctor had caught it fairly early, and she had already started receiving treatment. Unfortunately, the treatment had been unsuccessful so far. If she didn't start showing positive results soon, she would have to start an intensive round of chemotherapy.

It was almost time for Mrs. Uchiha's appointment, and Sakura wanted to make extra sure the office she would be using was presentable. She picked up the strewn papers across the desk and piled them neatly next to the computer, with the patient's file on top. A knock sounded at the door and Sakura's heart skipped a beat, much to her surprise. Why would she be nervous?

"Come in." She called, sitting at the desk and trying to look professional. She smiled warmly at the dark-haired woman that opened the door. "Good afternoon Mrs. Uchiha. Please, have a seat."

"Thank you, doctor, but please call me Mikoto." She sat down opposite Sakura, her frame thinner than the pinkette remembered.

"I'm sorry that doctor Senju wasn't available for your appointment today. She had a last-minute emergency and had to leave the hospital early."

"Please don't worry, doctor Haruno. She called me earlier to tell me she had to leave before our appointment today and told me I would be in excellent hands with you."

Sakura blushed at the indirect compliment from her mentor. "How are you feeling today, Mikoto?" She asked.

The older woman sighed in response. "I'm tired a lot these days."

"That's to be expected, I'm afraid." She checked her patient's file, noting the medication they were going to transfer her to. "It seems the mediation doctor Senju put you on last time doesn't seem to be working, so she's decided to try something else."

"Yes, she did mention that I'll be going on new medication, although she didn't sound hopeful that it would have any lasting effects."

"Yes, that's right. We decided to start with less powerful drugs to try and beat the cancer as they have less side effects. But if we can't see an improvement soon then we will have to try something more powerful."

"I see." Mikoto's eyes were downcast and her shoulders slumped at the news, although Sakura was certain she knew all that already.

Sakura reached over and placed a hand on the older woman's, comfortingly. "We're going to do our very best to help you get through this, Mikoto. I promise."

"Thank you, doctor Haruno." She replied, patting the younger woman's hand with a wan smile.

Sakura's heart squeezed in her chest. "Please call me Sakura."

This time, Mikoto's smile was genuine and she squeezed the younger woman's hand. "Sakura. You're so kind, dear."

"Not at all. I'm just doing my job."

Mikoto sighed, tipping her head to the side to gaze into Sakura's ocean green eyes. "If only Sasuke came with me today. He would have liked to see you."

Sakura couldn't stop the warmth that covered her face at the woman's words. "Oh no, I'm sure that's not true."

Mikoto gave her a bright smile. "He seemed quite smitten after your little chat during our last visit, although he was tight lipped about what you talked about." Her eyebrow expectantly, hoping Sakura would fill her in.

The doctor's blush heightened and she laughed nervously. Mikoto's shrewd eyes sparkled knowingly. "It was nothing, really." She insisted, seeing the older woman's smile widening at her flustered form. "We met recently at a party and he just had a question about something."

Mikoto laughed softly, shaking her head. "That boy, he worries me so much. He is constantly hovering over me at home, asking about my health. It's getting a little tiring." Sakura was glad that Mikoto assumed they were talking about her.

"That's sweet of him. He really cares about you." Sakura's heart warmed at her words. It was a side of Sasuke she hadn't seen before, and it made him a little more appealing in her eyes.

"The only reason he didn't come with me today was because I told him to go have some fun. I asked my friend to drive me here instead so he could spend the afternoon with his friends."

Sakura laughed, imagining him being scolded for not going out to play. He would have loved that. "Okay, Mikoto. I'm going to fill out your prescription. Please take it to the nurse's station and they will dispense the medication for you."

Mikoto's playful smile vanished and she once again appeared anxious. They stood up together and Sakura walked her to the door, a hand resting reassuringly on her back. "Please try not to worry, Mikoto. We will be with you every step of the way."

She turned her head to smile at the young doctor. "Thank you, Sakura." Before she could say anything else, her phone rang, startling her. "It's Sasuke. He's probably wondering how my appointment went. I'll see you next time, dear."

Sakura waved goodbye and watched as the older woman walked away, a smile in her voice as she greeted her son. The young doctor lent against the door-frame, a smile of her own blossoming over her features unconsciously at the thought of the man she had come to know, frantic and worried. It wasn't an easy picture to conjure up, and it made her laugh.

"What are you smiling about?" Ino asked, a smirk playing on the blonde's lips as she walked towards her. "Did you finally get a boyfriend?"

Sakura blushed, once again remembering Sasuke's question. "No, of course not. Don't be silly, Ino. I was just… thinking."

Ino snorted, unconvinced. "Yeah, sure. My young patient has been asking for you, so I came to see if you were free to visit her with me."

"Mirai?" Sakura's smile warmed at the mention of the young girl. She had been in the hospital for almost a month now, and both Sakura and Ino had come to adore the child. "Of course I have time. How has she been doing lately, anyway?"

Ino informed Sakura of the latest developments, and the two friends walked together to the Oncology ward, thoughts of Sasuke once again fading from the pinkette's mind.

.

.

.

"She didn't collect her medication?" Sakura asked, staring at the nurse before her in shock. "Did you call her to let her know?"

She was finishing up for the day and had come to the nurse's station to make sure everything was well, when she was informed that Mikoto had forgotten to take her newly prescribed medication home with her. Sakura chewed on her bottom lip, suddenly worried that something had been wrong with Sasuke that made his mother forget.

"Yes, but no one answered. I can try her again soon and ask her to come back tomorrow to collect them." The nurse suggested.

Sakura shook her head. "No, don't do that. It must be exhausting enough for her as it is just to come in for an appointment. I wouldn't want her to come in twice in two days." She grabbed the medication off the table and read the label, thinking. "Could you please give me her address? I'll swing by her place on my way home from work to hand it to her."

The nurse looked surprised at her offer. "Are you sure? You're just coming off a double shift; you must be exhausted."

"Yeah, I am. But I won't feel at ease until I know she has it. Please text me her address." Sakura thanked the nurse and waved goodbye to the staff on duty before slipping the medication in her pocket and making her way to the front doors. Her phone pinged and she glanced down at the address, bringing it up on her maps. _I probably should have asked for her phone number as well_ She thought to herself as she stepped into her car. _I hope my sudden arrival doesn't prove to be too much of an intrusion._

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.

The stoop was dark when Sakura stepped up to knock on the door, the family within obviously not expecting anyone's arrival tonight. She cleared her throat and sent a glare towards her chest, annoyed that she was so nervous. _Mikoto said that he went out today, so I'm sure he won't be home. I'll just give these to Mikoto and leave._ Satisfied, she reached her hand to the door and gave it two sharp knocks.

"Can I help you?" Sasuke's voice trailed off upon seeing who was at the door and he stared at her, momentarily speechless.

Sakura gathered herself out of her shock, clearing her throat once again before speaking. "Hi." _Idiot, don't wave at him._ She scolded herself, her hand having come up automatically. "Um, I had an appointment with your mother today."

"Yes, she told me already." He didn't too look pleased with that information.

Sakura fidgeted, feeling awkward under his gaze. "Yes, well, I'm sorry but it just happened that way. She forgot her medication, so I wanted to bring it to her on my way home." She held it out for him to take.

"Thanks. I'll tell her you stopped by." He grabbed it from her and stepped back, ready to close the door.

"Who is it, Sasuke?" Mikoto's head peered from behind him and she lit up in a smile. "Sakura! What a pleasant surprise. Are you here to see Sasuke? Come in and sit down."

Sakura's eyes widened at the invitation and she held her hands up, shaking her head. "No, that's okay Mikoto. I was just stopping by quickly to drop off your medication for you. I should really be going."

"Oh, I must have completely forgotten about it. I'm so sorry for making you come all this way just to hand it to me." She pushed Sasuke out of the way and opened the door wide, tutting at her son's behaviour. "I'm sorry about my son. He obviously needs more training when it comes to basic etiquette for guests. Please come in, Sakura."

"Thank you, Mikoto, but I really can't stay."

"Nonsense." She grabbed the young woman's arm, pulling her into the house and closing the door behind them. "We're about to sit down for dinner. I'd love for you to stay and eat with us; it would be the least I could do after you came to deliver my medication."

Sakura risked a glance at Sasuke only to see him staring back at her, a frown on his face. She flushed and turned her attention back to Mikoto, who was still smiling kindly at her. How could she refuse such a kind invitation? "Thank you, Mikoto. I would love to stay for dinner."

The older Uchiha grinned happily. "Excellent. I'll start dishing up. If you would like to help Sasuke set the table, he will show you where everything is."

"Of course." Sakura stole another glance at Sasuke, who had already started making his way to the kitchen. She followed him, heart pounding. _Well, this is going to be one interesting dinner._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not a medical expert and I am aware that the information in this chapter and ones in the future may well be inaccurate, so I apologise. That being said, I did do some research about the disease, but I'm not going to crack open any medical books just to make sure everything is 100% accurate. ^_^"  
> If you enjoyed this chapter, or if you're enjoying the story as a whole, please leave a review. With not much to do these days with the whole having to stay at home constantly, reading reviews really makes my days a little brighter. :3


	6. Chapter 6

Mikoto was quickly becoming one of Sakura's favourite people, and the pinkette truly admired how the older Uchiha tried to carry on the conversation despite the obvious awkward tension in the room. Sasuke sat ramrod straight in his seat, barely having said a word since dinner started and refusing to look at the young doctor. Whenever his mother attempted to include him in the conversation by asking him his opinion on something, Sasuke replied with short answers that didn't allow any follow up questions.

Sakura herself had never felt so awkward in her life. She didn't know what had gotten into the raven-haired man in the weeks since they had last seen each other. It was as if he had done a complete one-eighty. There was no flirtatious looks, teasing quips or cocky smiles. Since he had opened the door and saw her standing at the entrance of his home, Sasuke had barely looking at her. Sakura couldn't help but think she had done something wrong, although she had no idea what—unless he really was mad that she had learnt about his mother's illness.

Taking a bite of the stuffed chicken—cheese, bacon and pesto oozing out of the white flesh when she cut it open—she took the opportunity to look around at the dining room. There were paintings hanging on the wall, the captured scenery looking almost lifelike in its beauty. Small knickknacks covered a cabinet along the wall leading into the hallway and Sakura noted a group of photographs sitting atop the wooden piece of furniture. She took a closer look and noticed one of the photos contained Mikoto, a much younger Sasuke and another boy, barely on the cusp of adolescence.

"Mikoto, do you have another son?" She asked innocently, instantly regretting the question when both Uchiha's stiffened in their seats.

Mikoto recovered first, smiling sadly at the young doctor. "Yes. His name was Itachi."

_Was._ The word hit Sakura like a brick and all at once she felt like an idiot. "I'm so sorry, Mikoto. I shouldn't have asked. Please excuse my rudeness."

"Don't be silly. You weren't to know." Mikoto reached over to pat Sakura's hand. "My eldest son passed away five years ago. He was hit by a drunk driver." Tears welled up in the older woman's eyes at the thought of her child.

Sakura had to fight off her own tears as she saw the obvious pain on the older lady's face. She glanced at Sasuke, only to see him holding his cutlery in a vice grip, glaring at the wall behind his mother's head. She turned back to Mikoto. "I'm really sorry for your loss."

They continued to eat in silence, Sakura's inner voice yelling at her for being an idiot and asking such a personal question. She had no right to pry into their personal lives, especially when it obviously hurt them so much. She glanced up when Mikoto started coughing, noting with alarm the blood seeping out of her nose.

Sakura was by her side in an instant, pressing a napkin to her nose. "Are you okay, Mikoto?" She asked. This was one of the symptoms of her illness, which would only get worse as time went by.

Sasuke was kneeling by her other side, his features pinched in worry as his eyes scanned her face. Sakura felt a pang of compassion for him. His mother was all he had—she hadn't seen a father in any of the photos and Sakura wasn't going to make the mistake of asking another personal question—so it was no wonder he was so overprotective of her.

"I'm fine, dears." Mikoto replied, smiling as they hovered over her. "It's just a nosebleed. I'll go to the bathroom to clean myself up." Sakura held her arm as she stood, her eyes watching the older woman for signs of pain. Mikoto waved them away, telling them to continue while she sorted herself out.

Sakura sat back in her chair, her eyes moving to Sasuke as he continued to watch his mother walk away. When she was out of sight, he turned and sat back down, refusing to look at the woman across the table. He stared at his plate, eyebrows drawn together, and Sakura had the sudden longing to reach out and smooth away the worried lines on his forehead.

"I'm sorry." Sakura whispered, eyes dropping to where her hands rested on her lap. "I shouldn't have come tonight and I shouldn't have asked about your brother."

"Like mum said, you didn't know." She glanced up from her lap to see him watching her, and she was surprised that he didn't look angry. His eyes were still drawn together, but Sakura didn't detect any hint of irritation from him.

She swallowed the lump in her throat at the pained look on his face. "I'm still sorry, though."

The bathroom door opened and Mikoto emerged, smiling sheepishly at the two of them. "I'm sorry to do this Sakura, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave you both. I'm suddenly so tired and I think it's best if I go to bed." She looked exhausted and Sakura felt a pang of compassion for the woman. She turned to face her son. "Sasuke, be a dear and wash up, please. And look after our guest."

Sakura stood, walking over to Mikoto and enveloping her in a hug. She probably should have asked first, since she barely knew the woman, but Sakura needed to show her that she scared—and not just as a doctor. Sakura pulled away, smiling at the older woman. "Thank you for having me over for dinner, Mikoto. The food was delicious."

The raven-haired woman smiled back, real warmth in her eyes. "You're welcome over anytime, dear." She reached up to cup Sakura's face. "Thank you." She whispered. Sakura wasn't sure what Mikoto was thanking her for but she got the feeling that it was important.

Sasuke came over to wrap his mother in a hug and the older woman's small frame almost disappeared as her son held her tight. He leant back and brushed a kiss over her forehead before looking back at Sakura. He averted his gaze, clearing his throat gruffly and walked back to the table to start packing up.

Mikoto said goodnight and headed into her bedroom. Sakura stood there, watching as Sasuke silently took the plates to the sink and wondering what she was supposed to do now. Stay and help, or leave? He hadn't bid her farewell, but neither had he asked her if she would like a hot beverage—the common thing to do when wanting someone to stay for longer.

When he started filling the sink without so much as a backwards glance to her, Sakura sighed, making up her mind. "I'll help." She grabbed a tea towel and stood beside him, ready to lend a hand.

Sasuke spared her a glance. "Go sit down. I don't need help."

Sakura scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Why are you always so stubborn? It doesn't hurt you if I help, does it?"

"Fine. Do what you want." He said it as if her offering her help annoyed him.

They stood in silence, Sasuke washing and Sakura drying, until the young doctor couldn't take it anymore. She turned to face the young Uchiha, mind frantically searching for something to say to end this awkwardness. "So, how long have bee—"

Wet, soapy hands grabbed her face, catching her off-guard, and then Sasuke was in front of her, pushing her backwards against the pantry door as his mouth covered hers hungrily. Her eyes widened at the unexpected attack and she let out a squeak when he pressed himself into her. His hand moved to the nape of her neck and he manoeuvred her head back slightly, granting himself easier access to her lips and tongue.

Heat blossomed in the pit of her stomach and Sakura found herself pushing against him just as fiercely, arms reaching up to tangle in his hair as she moved her tongue to play with his. Sasuke growled his approval and the next instant he was lifting her up to perch against the counter, his hands reaching under her shirt to explore the bare skin beneath.

Sakura wrapped her legs around him, moaning when his teeth nipped at her lip before trailing down to give attention to her neck. She knew in the back of her mind that she had to stop this, but his kisses were intoxicating; the places he touched burned so much she didn't want to let go.

"Don't forget to put the leftovers in the fridge, Sasuke." Mikoto called from her bedroom, snapping Sakura to her senses like a bucket of ice water to the head.

He had also paused in his ministrations and Sakura took the opportunity to push him away. She jumped off the counter, face flaming, and avoided his gaze as she hurried into the dining room where her handbag was sitting. A hand caught her wrist and she spun around, coming face to face with Sasuke's heated gaze.

"I really need to go now." She stuttered, twisting her arm to break out of his grip. She grabbed her stuff and was halfway out the front door when Sasuke spoke.

"Sakura, wait." He grabbed her again, his obsidian eyes almost frantic.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke." She replied, shaking him off once again.

She made a beeline to her car, refusing to look back.

.

.

.

Sasuke was still silently cursing himself days later over his stupidity. He should never have lost control like that. Should never have pinned her to the pantry door and kissed her senseless. He definitely shouldn't be wanting to do it all over again.

He had been shocked to see the pretty doctor standing on his porch, her pink hair tied in a messy ponytail and her plump, sweet lips opened in a silent 'O' at seeing him. He had realized she must have thought he wouldn't be home, and Sasuke was suddenly glad he hadn't taken Naruto up on his offer to have a night out. Seeing Sakura standing there, her emerald eyes shining in the light of the moon, Sasuke had wanted to kiss her right there and then. And then she had the audacity to lick those heavenly lips of hers and he had to fight off a groan, his desire shooting straight to his groin.

His mother had told him about her appointment with Sakura earlier on in the day, gushing to him about how sweet and kind she had been towards her, but he hadn't thought she would show up later that evening, proclaiming that his mother had forgotten her medication. Sasuke had scoffed inwardly; no doubt Mikoto had purposely not taken them in the hopes that Sakura would visit them, the sly fox. He knew his mother worried about him—he hadn't been in a serious relationship in years, and she wanted to see him happy—but never had he thought she would try to play matchmaker. Not that he could complain—he was glad his mother approved of his pretty little doctor. The issue was with Sakura herself. Sasuke didn't think that she would ever approve of him. The way she had reacted to his proposal of a date—his _serious_ proposal—would have been comical, if it hadn't stung so much.

Sasuke had been cold towards Sakura during dinner, he knew that. But he needed to supress his desire of her, which had been an extremely difficult thing to do the longer the evening progressed. Every time she smiled or laughed, he twitched with need. And the way she ate, wrapping her mouth around her fork and closing her eyes in bliss as she tasted the food—it took all of Sasuke's willpower to keep from tackling her in front of his mother and putting those lips to a much better use than eating.

And then they were alone. He had tried to ignore her; ignore the floral scent that wafted up to his nose as she passed him to retrieve a tea towel; ignore the way her hair showed off her nape, begging him to kiss it; ignore the memory of his lips on hers, and how much he wanted to kiss her again. Her quiet, breathy voice was the last straw and before Sasuke knew what he was doing, he had her pinned to the pantry door and was kissing her so thoroughly he wasn't sure if he could stop.

When he lifted her onto the counter and she hugged him tight with her legs, he knew he was going to do very naughty things to her without even leaving the kitchen. But then his mother's voice cut through the lust and Sakura was pushing away from him and racing out the door. Sasuke had tried to stop her and apologise—for what, he didn't know. He sure as hell wasn't sorry for kissing her. But she was startled, and Sasuke knew what her brain would be telling her: he isn't good enough, this is a mistake, get away from him. He could have kept her from leaving—his grip was so loose it was easy for her to break free—but he knew he shouldn't. Even though he knew she would leave, her smart doctor mind coming up with a thousand reasons why this had been a bad idea and why she should never see him again, Sasuke wondered if he could cling onto the hope that maybe, just maybe, she would accept him the way he was.


	7. Chapter 7

The medication wasn't working, which meant only one thing. It was time to start chemotherapy. Mikoto would have to stay in the hospital during her treatment, she would become even more frail than she already was and she would start losing her hair. Sasuke knew his mother was worried—no woman would want to be seen like that—but he didn't care, not if it meant she would get better. That she would become healthy again.

Sasuke also knew that his mother needed him—more now than ever. Which was why he felt the crushing guilt every time he left her at home. He didn't know if he could look at her without breaking down, knowing what was about to come. Chemotherapy didn't automatically mean she would get better. She would have to respond positively to it, and it would take a long time before she would be out of the woods.

Once again, Sasuke gave his mother a quick kiss on the cheek, telling her he was going to see Naruto without meeting her eyes. He swiped his keys off the counter and walked out the door, his eyes shut tight against the guilt.

He straddled his hog and affixed his helmet, slamming the key into the ignition. He either needed to get wasted—which was a definite no—or beat someone up in order to lessen the pain he was feeling. Instead, he was going to hang out with his dweeb of a best friend and hope the blond pissed him off enough to justify giving him a black eye.

.

.

.

He was back. Sakura scolded herself for the somersault her stomach made at the thought of seeing him again after their last encounter. Her lips still tingled from the kiss, and she had woken up on more than one occasion panting, having dreamt they had done a lot more in that kitchen than just kiss. Sakura shook her head to rid herself of the memory. This wasn't the time to turn into a horny teenage girl; he had gotten into another fight and was here to get his injuries treated.

Sakura sighed as she eyed the chart. She made her way to the room where he was waiting and took a moment to take him in, shaking her head at the man before her. "Why are you back here, Sasuke?" she asked as she stepped into the room, maintaining her façade of professionalism. Sasuke was sitting on the bed, his split lip turned down in a frown. He was brooding, Sakura could tell, and she sighed again at the sight of him. "You should be at home with your mother, not picking fights with thugs."

"It wasn't a thug," he replied, face downcast. He hadn't even looked at her when she entered the room.

"Oh, who was it then?" Sakura busied herself by retrieving the alcohol swabs and other items, but she glanced at the Uchiha from the corner of her eye. He wasn't acting like his usual insufferable self today and that worried her.

A deep breath. Then, "No one."

Sakura turned back to face him and raised an eyebrow at his statement. "No one? Wow, you must be pretty special to get beaten up by no one." She meant it as a joke, to try and relax him, but he didn't budge. She sighed again and pulled up a stool in front of him. "This will sting a little." She warned before starting her ministrations.

It didn't take long before she had finished and she sat back, perusing his face. "You know, you didn't really need to come to the hospital this time. You barely have any injuries." Again, her lightened tone didn't seem to help. Sasuke remained sullen, his eyes cast downwards. She reached a finger under his chin and raised his head until his eyes met hers. "Hey, are you okay? You're kind of scaring me."

She had never seen him look so vulnerable before. His obsidian gaze held so much pain in them that Sakura was afraid it would tear him apart. He grabbed her hand and pulled her closer, resting his head against her shoulder.

"What are you doing, Sasuke?" She tried to pull away, but his arms enclosed around her waist and held her tight, refusing to let go.

"Can I stay like this, just a for a while?" His voice was soft, almost pleading, and Sakura's heart lurched at the sound.

Her arms slowly went around him and she rubbed his back, trying to soothe away the pain. "If you want to talk about it, I'll listen."

He was quiet for some time, and Sakura figured he didn't want to talk. But finally, he whispered, "I'm scared."

Her eyes glanced down at him. She couldn't see his features with his head buried in her shoulder, but she imagined seeing the tears in his eyes. She lifted a hand to stroke her fingers through his hair. "Because of your mother?"

His arms tightened around her again and he buried himself further against her. "What if she…?" His voice cracked and he left the rest of the question open, unable to finish.

Tears sprung to Sakura's eyes and she fought back a sob at hearing the raw pain in his voice. "We will do everything we can to help her get better, Sasuke." She tried to sound calm, reassuring, but she was seconds away for breaking down alongside him.

"What if that isn't enough? I can't—she can't—" he let out a frustrated groan and clutched her so tight it hurt.

"Sasuke," she reached behind her and extracted his arms from around her back, moving them to her lap. She held his hands with one of her own and lifted his chin with her other, noting the silent tears staining his cheeks. She looked at him, eyes imploring him to listen to her. "I know this must be hard for you, and I understand that it's scary, but you need to be positive. Your mother _needs_ you to be positive for her." She reached up to brush the tears from his face. "Can you do that, Sasuke? You are all she has. She needs you now more than ever."

He took another shuddering breath but he seemed to compose himself a little, though he didn't lean away from her touch. "I know." He held her gaze for a long time, reaching up to brush a tear that had made its way to her chin before saying, "It was my best friend."

Sakura blinked, confused at the sudden change of topic. "What was?"

"The person I got in a fight with." Sasuke smirked slightly, part of his usual self peeking through.

"What? Why would you get in a fight with your best friend?" Sakura had gotten into arguments with Ino multiple times, but she could never imagine wanting to inflict harm on her.

Sasuke shrugged, a little sheepish. "He was complaining how his mother always nags him, and that he can't wait to leave home. I got mad." He averted his gaze, finally pulling away from her.

Sakura understood why that might make him mad, but she didn't understand why he would resort to violence. "Even so, he is your best friend. Why would you hit him for that?"

"I wanted to provoke him into hitting me back."

_"Why?"_ That was the stupidest reasoning Sakura had ever heard.

Sasuke finally looked at her again, and he held her gaze. "Because I would rather feel the pain of a fist to my face than the pain of what could happen to my mother."

Sasuke would rather get beaten up than deal with his own emotions? Sakura was dumbfounded! Was that why he had gotten into a fight last time—because he wanted to take the pain away from his heart and focus it on superficial wounds instead? "You're an idiot, Sasuke. There are much better ways to deal with your feelings than _getting beaten up."_

"Like?" he asked, eyebrow raised in question.

Sakura huffed. "Like talking about it. Have you ever thought to talk about your feelings to someone? Maybe discussing what you're going through with your best friend would help you feel better?"

Sasuke snorted. "I'm not going to talk about my feelings with Naruto."

"Well, if not Naruto, is there someone else you would feel comfortable talking to? I will be happy to listen, if you ever need to talk."

Sasuke looked at her then, his obsidian eyes flashing as he moved closer to her. "That's a nice offer, doc, but there are many other things I'd prefer to do with you than 'talk'." His gaze fell to her lips and Sakura sucked in a breath when he inched closer.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Sasuke?" she whispered, her body screaming yes while her mind screamed no. "Your emotions are unstable right now. You're not thinking straight."

His gaze flicked back to hers and her breath caught at their intensity. "I want you, Sakura."

Her body responded to his words; heat unfurled in her belly and her toes curled, but Sakura knew she couldn't act on her feelings. "You want me? Wow, that's so romantic," she replied, rolling her eyes. She had to try and keep her calm lest she make a mistake right there in the hospital room.

Sasuke glared at her. "That's not what I mean." He looked away and let out a harsh breath, the feintest of pink touching his cheeks before he met her eyes again. "I like you."

Sakura's heart stuttered to a stop and she felt momentarily thrilled at his confession before her mind interrupted her elation, reminding her that this would be a bad idea. "Against my better judgement, I like you too," she admitted. "But I don't think we would be a good match."

Sasuke's eyes flashed, though not with desire this time. "Why? Because I get into fights?"

"Because you aren't the type of guy girls take home to their parents." As soon as the words were out Sakura knew she messed up. Sasuke flinched before quickly schooling his features into his usual, indifferent mask.

"How stupid of me. Of course you would feel ashamed to take someone with piercings and tattoos home to meet your parents. I'm glad we got that cleared up." He stood abruptly, his movements knocking Sakura's tray of instruments to the floor, and stomped his way to the door.

Sakura called out to him, but he refused to look back. She groaned, hitting her forehead and cursing herself for saying something so stupid. She had hurt him—she had seen it in his eyes—and she didn't know what to do to make it right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologise for the shorter chapter. I am struggling a bit with writing despite the ample time I have on my hands, and I don't feel like I'm giving my best because of it. But I also don't want to postpone uploading chapters, because I know I'll stop altogether if I do that... Despite that, I hope you still enjoyed the chapter.  
> I hope you're all doing well despite the restrictions put upon us at the moment. Please continue to look after yourselves and stay safe.


	8. Chapter 8

"Unfortunately, the medication we prescribed for you so far doesn't seem to be working, Mrs. Uchiha. Therefore, I suggest it's time we start thinking about something stronger. I believe we should start chemotherapy as soon as possible."

Sakura stood behind her mentor, Tsunade Senju, as she explained the procedure the dark-haired woman would have to go through. She tried to keep her eyes on Mikoto, but they strayed constantly to the man beside her, holding her hand comfortingly. Sakura's heart was touched by how easily Sasuke showed his affection for his mother. It would be a difficult time for Mikoto, during the chemotherapy process, and she would have to spend much of her time at the hospital. Sakura knew she would need all the love she could get.

"During breaks between the chemotherapy treatments, when you are able to go home, you will have to be careful. Side effects can include anaemia, nausea and fatigue," Tsunade said. "You will also be more susceptible to illness or infection, so I would advise you to stay away from the public during your recovery."

Mikoto took in the information silently. When Tsunade asked her if she had any questions, the older Uchiha tugged at a strand of her long, dark locks and asked, "Will I lose my hair?"

"It is possible, but not everyone does." Tsunade proceeded to show her paperwork that would have to be filled out, explaining how long her hospital stay would be with each session of the chemotherapy. "For the first round of treatment, you will have two injections a week for three weeks. After that, you will be allowed to go home for a month, giving time for the medication to take effect. It will depend how quickly your body begins to accept the treatment, but I suggest there will be at least three or four rounds before you are in the clear."

Sakura listened, knowing how difficult this must be for the family. Once again, her eyes wandered to where Sasuke sat, rigid and still in his seat as he absorbed the information. She willed him to look at her so she could give him an encouraging smile, but he kept his eyes fixed on the blonde doctor.

"I'm very thankful for everything you're doing for me, Tsunade," Mikoto said once they had finished speaking. She stood to leave, a brave smile on her face.

"We will do everything we can to help you during this time," Tsunade promised. "I'll see you in a few days, then, to start the treatment."

Mikoto and her son exited the room and Sakura tried one last time to catch Sasuke's eye. He hadn't looked at her throughout the whole meeting and that stung. Yes, she knew she had said something she shouldn't have the last time they had seen each other. His confession had caught her off guard and she had said the first thing that came to mind. What she said had been partly true—he wasn't someone she would normally feel comfortable bringing home to her parents—but she had gotten to know him better after spending time with him, and she didn't quite believe that anymore. Still, it didn't mean they had miraculously become compatible just because she understood him better. They were so different, and Sakura wasn't certain they would be good together.

"Mikoto!" Sakura called, rushing after them. The older Uchiha glanced back at her with a smile and paused, waiting for her to catch up.

"Sakura, thank you for being in the room today," Mikoto said. "You were very quiet, though. Is everything alright?" She glanced at her son. He had stopped when his mother did, but still he refused to look at the young doctor.

Sakura's return smile was forced. "I'm fine, Mikoto. I was just there to observe today. Tsunade is the doctor in charge of your treatment, so it would be rude of me to butt in when she's speaking." _How can she still be so astute when she's got her own problems to worry about?_ Sakura wondered. Had Sasuke been acting strange at home? Or had Mikoto noticed the tension in the room between them during her appointment? What would she think about what Sakura had said to her son? Would she be shocked? Angry?

Sakura forced herself to relax and stop thinking about unnecessary things. She gave the older woman a real smile. "I just wanted to tell you that I'll be with you every step of the way during your treatments."

"Thank you, dear." Mikoto's eyes misted but she sent the young doctor a brave smile. "I'm glad to hear that." She stepped back and glanced once again at her son, nudging him with her elbow. "Aren't you going to say something, Sasuke?"

Finally, _finally,_ Sasuke's obsidian orbs met her emerald ones, but only for a moment before glancing away. "Thanks, or whatever. Come on, mum. We should go."

Sakura watched his retreating back with shock. Was this how he was going to treat her now? He was acting like a complete jerk, and in front of his mother, no less!

Mikoto looked between her son and Sakura, her eyebrows pulling down in concern. "I'm sorry, Sakura. I don't know what's gotten into him."

"It's fine, Mikoto. He's probably just worried about your treatment." She said goodbye to the older woman before heading back into Tsunade's office. The thought of no longer meaning something to Sasuke burned a hole in her heart.

.

.

.

The first round of chemotherapy treatment had just started, but already it seemed to be going well. Sakura was busy most of the first week and couldn't visit Mikoto as much as she would have liked, but she made sure to check on her at least once a day during her shift. Sasuke was almost always there when he wasn't working, and it made for uncomfortable visits when they were both present at the same time. He still hadn't said anything to her, which seemed to make Mikoto more concerned, but Sakura refused to tell her about what had happened between the two of them and continued to dodge the older Uchiha's questions when asked.

After her rounds were finished on Friday, Sakura made her way to the Oncology ward. She knew there was a high chance that Sasuke would be there, but Sakura was sick of the silent treatment. He would have to get used to seeing a lot more of her while his mother was in the hospital, and Sakura refused to be cowed by his presence. Despite that, Sakura paused when she saw him sitting by his mother's bedside, the desire to flee almost overtaking her.

Mikoto's face brightened at seeing the young doctor and she beckoned her over. "Sakura, hello. How has your day been? You look tired, dear. Are you getting enough rest?"

Sakura couldn't help the smile that transformed her face. She was certain she had never met another person as selfless and kind as Mikoto Uchiha. "I'm fine, Mikoto. Please don't worry about me. You need to focus on looking after yourself, okay?"

Sasuke had stiffened when his mother addressed the pinkette, and he sat frozen on his seat, refusing to even glance her way when Sakura took the seat next to him. Sakura allowed herself the opportunity to take him in—briefly, so as not to alert the keen-eyed woman on the bed. Her eyes flickered over his creased forehead, pierced brow and the slender shape of his nose. She made herself turn away before she reached his lips. She did not need to be thinking about that in front of his mother.

"How are you feeling today, Mikoto?" Sakura knew the woman wanted to act strong, but she also needed to be honest with her doctors. They couldn't help her if she hid anything from them.

"I've been nauseas today," she replied. Sakura noted that she did indeed look a little paler today.

"That's to be expected, I'm afraid. It's one of the symptoms of the treatment. The nausea will pass in the next day or two, though."

Mikoto patted her hand with a smile. "I understand. It's uncomfortable, but it's part of the process. Sasuke has been taking good care of me, so I can't complain too much now, can I?"

Sakura returned the smile. "I'm sure he has. He's a good son. You must be very proud of him."

Obsidian eyes slid to her. Sakura could feel them, but she refused to return the gaze. She had been wanting to apologize to him all week, and since he was ignoring her, she would just have to do it indirectly.

"Yes, he is. I am very lucky to have him." Mikoto shuffled further into the blankets and covered her mouth to yawn. "I think I might get some rest. Thank you for coming to visit me again, Sakura."

"I'll stay until you fall asleep." Sakura tucked the blankets around Mikoto's body and smoothed back her dark hair from her face. "If you'd like, I'll wash your hair for you tomorrow."

"I'd like that. Thank you, dear."

Mikoto nodded off, a smile on her lips, and Sakura's heart warmed with affection for the raven-haired woman. She reached over and placed her hand on Sasuke's, just long enough to give it a comforting squeeze before letting go. "She's going to be fine, Sasuke." He remained silent and Sakura sighed. She stood up to leave and placed her hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said what I did that day. And I didn't lie to your mother just now. She has every right to be proud of you, Sasuke. You're a good person."

Her hand lingered for a few seconds, hoping he would respond. When he didn't, she let her hand fall and exited the room. As she made her way to her next patient, Sakura wondered if the apology had been too little too late.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a little short, but for the life of me I couldn't seem to extend it. I also have the next two chapters (mostly) lined up and ready to go, so I wanted to post this one a few days early for you. I'm currently writing three different stories, and this one is getting the most attention so I've been trying to make it my priority for ya'll. ;)


	9. Chapter 9

Sasuke didn't know what to do. He was frustrated, both with Sakura and with himself.

It had hurt more than he thought possible when she had rejected him. She hadn't said it out loud, but her meaning was clear—he wasn't good enough for her.

He knew he shouldn't fault her for her feelings. She had obviously never experienced pain the way he had growing up. He was sure she had lived a sheltered life, so of course she wouldn't understand him. Or accept him.

Sasuke had been petty when he decided to avoid her. He knew that, but he also didn't want to be close to her. It already took everything in him not to touch her, hold her, kiss her whenever they were alone together, and he didn't think she would appreciate him doing so after she had thrown his confession back in his face.

His mother knew something was up. She noticed the tightening of his body whenever the pink-haired doctor was in close proximity. Her shrewd gaze took in more than he would have liked, but he refused to express his feelings to her, no matter how many times she asked.

And then, Sakura had apologized. Not directly of course, since he had refused to say a word to her since that horrible day. She had tried to talk to him several times, but each time he brushed her off, knowing he wouldn't be able to stay calm in her presence. Sasuke's emotions were so tumultuous that he would have either shouted at her or fallen to his knees and begged her to reconsider. The latter option terrified him, and he realized how much he had started to care for the young doctor. But Sasuke Uchiha had never begged for anything in his life and his pride kept him from doing so even now, while the rest of his body screamed at him to make her his.

Sakura had acknowledged him as being a good son to Mikoto, and that shook Sasuke to his very core. His father, before he up and left them, had always berated him, saying how much of a disappointment he was. His mother had reassured him each time that she was proud of him, but Sasuke hadn't believed it. What had he done as a child to make him such a disappointment to his father? For a long time, Sasuke had wondered if that was why he had left—because Sasuke failed to live up to the man's expectations.

But those words—those seven words coming from that pretty mouth—had almost stolen his breath. She had to be saying it for his mother's benefit only, because why would Sakura think anyone could be proud of him? What had he done in life, except beat people and party? No, his brother had been the good son, but he had been taken from them too soon.

Then, Sakura helped his mother get comfortable so she could rest and a part of Sasuke ached at watching the display of affection between the two women. When Sakura placed her hand on his, reassuring him with kind words, Sasuke wanted to break down again. He wanted to entwine their fingers together and pull her into his lap so he could hold her until the rush of emotions fled his body. He wasn't used to feeling so much, but ever since he found out that his mother was sick, Sasuke had been a sea of emotions, and he wasn't sure how to contain them.

He had said nothing, even when she stood to leave, touching his shoulder and telling him that she had meant her words—that she truly thought his mother should be proud of him. Sasuke had to keep his body locked tight, knowing that if he gave himself even the smallest opportunity to touch her back, he would regret it. He would do something stupid and scare her, and she would retract her statement of him. So, he stayed rooted to his seat, his eyes not leaving the sleeping form of his mother while he heard her leave the room.

Sasuke's phone rang, pulling him back to the present. He lay on his bed, legs crossed at the ankles while he stared at the ceiling. Glancing at the phone, he frowned at the unknown number before accepting the call with a grumbled "Hello".

As he listened to the person on the other end, his frown slowly morphed into a smirk. "I'll be there," he told them, before ending the call.

Finally, he knew what he should do.

.

.

.

"It has been _way_ too long since we've gone out to let off steam." Ino yelled above the heavy bass reverberating through the club. She wore a tight, thigh length red dress, the back of which was practically nonexistent.

Sakura had decided on something a little more practical, though the neckline of her ocean green dress plunged deeper than most outfits she owned. She had wanted to dress up for once, deciding it was about damn time she had some fun. She had seen Sasuke almost every day at the hospital this past week and she was tired of feeling like crap every time he ignored her.

"Let's go get some drinks." Ino grabbed her hand and they made their way to the bar, ordering two shots and a cocktail each before meandering through the throng of bodies until they found a spare table. Ino glanced down at her phone, typing something quickly before looking at Sakura with a grin. "Kiba's here. He is going to be our designated driver, so we can go as wild as we want today."

The last time Sakura had gone 'wild' had been in college, and she had sworn to never drink that much ever again after spending the next day by the toilet, sick as a dog. But that didn't mean she couldn't have any fun at all tonight, and Sakura was determined to drink until she forgot about a certain dark eyed, dark haired, incredibly hot man.

She shot the drinks back, one after the other, and slammed the glasses on the table. Ino raised her eyebrow but shook her head, laughing. "Damn girl, way to start the night off right!" She followed suit and the two friends grinned at each other. Almost immediately, Sakura felt the warmth of the shots flow through her body, and she sipped her cocktail before jumping back to her feet.

"I'm going to get another round for us," she told Ino, fishing some cash out of her small clutch.

"Already? You don't want to let those sink in first?" Ino eyed her friend up and down, her teeth tugging at her bottom lip. "You're not really the queen of drinking, you know that?"

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Hey, I'm here to 'go wild' tonight, so that is exactly what I'm going to do." She shot her blonde friend a cheeky grin before heading to the bar and ordering two more shots each.

Ino refused to drink the shots this time and continued to sip her cocktail instead, her eyes pinched in concern as she watched Sakura down the potent drinks. Sakura grinned, already tipsy, and reached for her cocktail.

"You've had a difficult week, Sakura," Ino yelled over the music. "You doing okay?"

"No shop talk while we're out, Ino!" she replied. "I'm fine! I just want to have some fun for once in my life."

Kiba found them and said a quick hello to Sakura before planting himself beside his girlfriend, holding her much too close to be considered appropriate in a public setting. Ino's attention immediately turned to him and Sakura decided to give them some space, not wanting to be the third wheel. She stood up and headed towards the dancefloor, giggling when she listed to the side. She caught herself before she fell, paused for a moment until her head stopped spinning, then continued her way to the dancefloor.

It wasn't hard to find dance partners. The men seemed to flock to her one by one as she swayed to the music. Sakura wasn't one to dance with strangers—hell, she wasn't one to come to these places, period—but she was drunk enough not to care and allowed them to move into her personal space. Some of the guys were happy to dance with her without touching, but others were bold, grabbing her waist to pull her closer. She may have allowed them into her personal space, but she had enough common sense to know she didn't like roaming hands, and she swatted them away whenever they got too friendly.

One man didn't take the hint and laughed when she tried pushing him away. He held her close to him, his fingers digging painfully into her sides and she squirmed, her heart kicking up a notch at his forcefulness.

"Let go!" Sakura struggled in his grip, her glare threatening death, but still the man refused to comply. His breath was rank, his face so close to hers she could see the pores on his skin. He pressed her into him tight enough to feel his excitement. She almost gagged, and she pushed against him with renewed vigor.

"She told you to let her go." Sasuke appeared, like an avenging angel, and pulled the man off her. He stumbled back, not quite understanding what just happened before glaring at the newcomer. Sasuke placed himself in front of Sakura, his body rigid and arms folded across his chest. She couldn't see his face, but she could imagine the seething look he gave the other man, because after just a few seconds he slinked off, like a dog with his tail between his legs.

Sasuke turned to her, his glare in full force as he stared down at her smaller frame. "What the hell are you doing?" His nose flared and Sakura noticed a slight tremor in his hands as he clutched his arms in a vice-like grip.

Instead of thanking him, the adrenaline pumping through her veins heated her blood and she matched his stance, returning his glare with one of her own. "What are _you_ doing? Why are you here?"

He shrugged. "Ino invited me."

"Ino?" Damn that blonde-haired nosy little brat. How did she even get his number? If she had gone fishing for it in his patient file, she could get into a lot of trouble.

Finally, Sasuke seemed to compose himself, and he unfolded his arms, his stance relaxing. His gaze made a slow, appreciative perusal over her, dipping into the cleavage of her chest and lingering there before slicing back to hers. His obsidian eyes smoldered and Sakura almost gasped at the look of unconcealed desire in his eyes.

His arms snaked around her body and he pulled her flush to his chest, his hands locked together on the small of her back. He leaned forward until his lips brushed her ear. "Dance with me," he whispered, his hot breath tickling her ear and sending a shiver down her spine.

She tilted her head up to glare at him. "After you've been ignoring me all week? Why should I?" Despite her words, she made no attempt to extract herself from his hold.

Sasuke's eyes landed on her lips and it took him a moment before he answered her. "Let's call a truce, just for tonight."

"A truce? We're not at war here, Sasuke. I said something I regretted, you ignored me, I apologized. If you're not going to accept it then let me go." This time she did try and wiggle her way out of his grip, just take make her point clear.

He huffed and his hands tightened on her back so she couldn't escape. "Fine. I accept your apology. Now, dance with me."

"I don't know if I want to," Sakura said, lifting her chin defiantly. "I think I'd rather dance on my own."

"You can barely even stand on your own, doc. You try dancing and you'll fall flat on your pretty little ass."

"I'm not that drunk!" Even as the words came out, he blurred in front of her and she had to close her eyes for a beat before she could refocus. He smirked knowingly.

Bending down, he grazed her ear with his teeth. "Stop being stubborn and dance with me, Sakura."

Heat pooled in Sakura's belly at the way his husky voice whispered her name and her fists tightened against his shirt. If she wasn't careful, she would swoon right there on the dancefloor. "I should really be getting back to…" Her voice trailed off when she glanced over to her table, the sight of Kiba and Ino making out halting her sentence. She did _not_ want to go back there right now.

Sasuke must have followed her gaze because he chuckled—a low, almost inaudible rumble that reverberated through his chest. "Looks like you're stuck with me for now."

Her body craved him—Sakura wasn't too proud to admit that—and so she gave in, letting herself dance with him. The feel of his hands locked around her as they moved together heated her body, and when she reached up to wrap her arms around his neck, she was certain he could see the desire in her emerald eyes.

She expected him to kiss her. Hell, she wanted him to kiss her. But instead, he leaned close to her ear again and whispered, "Do you want to get out of here?"

Sakura nodded dumbly, the implication of those words sending liquid heat straight to her core. They made their way back to her table to retrieve her things, said goodbye to Ino and Kiba, and was out the door before Sakura knew what was going on.

He pulled her to where a motorbike sat, shining brightly against the lamp post. Sasuke secured a helmet onto her head and slid her arms through a jacket that was stored away in a compartment. He helped her on behind him, her head still swaying from the drinks, pulled her hands around him so they clasped together and told her to hold on tight.

The ride was exhilarating. Sakura wasn't sure what excited her more—the thrill of it being her first time on the back of a bike, the alcohol still addling her brain, or the feel of Sasuke pressed close to her—but by the time they had pulled up at the front of Sasuke's house, she was practically panting with desire. It took all her self-control not to pounce on him right there on the street.

She allowed him to lead her up to the living room couch, but blood was rushing into her ears so much she could barely hear him speak. "What?" she asked after realizing he had raised a question.

Sasuke smirked, and she wondered if he could see exactly what she wanted to do written on her face. "Do you want to watch a movie?"

She didn't. Watching a movie was the last thing she wanted to do.

Sakura shook her head, and she wondered if he would let her take his clothes off. She could push him against the couch, straddle his hips and mark him with her mouth before he even knew what was happening.

"You're making this very hard for me," he growled, eyes dropping down to her chest again.

"I'd rather make _you_ hard for me," she muttered, wondering why they were still standing there.

A strangled laugh came from Sasuke's throat and he closed his eyes as though to compose himself. "I'm that too, doc." He peeked an eye open, saw the unadulterated look of lust in her eyes and groaned. "A movie. Let's watch a movie."

Getting sick of all the talking—did he really bring her here for a _movie_ —Sakura pushed him onto the couch and straddled him, just as she had envisioned doing. Before he could protest, her lips were on his and she suckled his bottom lip into her mouth. He groaned at the contact, his hands falling to her waist as he brought her closer. His mouth opened and her tongue darted in, caressing his and running along his teeth.

Sakura felt his length pressing against her thigh and she moaned, rocking into it as he deepened the kiss. They were a flurry of teeth and tongues and hands and Sakura couldn't get enough. She wanted more. She _needed_ more. She ground against him again, whimpering at the contact, and Sasuke released her lips with a groan.

She made quick work of the buttons on his shirt and then dove in, hands pressing against his pectoral muscles before running down to his navel. He hissed at the contact and pushed his hips up against hers, his mouth releasing her lips to trail down to her jaw. One of his hands cupped her breast through the fabric of her dress, massaging it and tweaking the nipple until it was hard against his fingers. His other hand moved lower, making its way to the end of her dress before inching upwards, fingers light against her thigh.

He stilled suddenly, hand mere inches from where she wanted him most and she mewled, rocking her hips against him. "Please," she breathed, leaning down to capture his lips again. He kissed her back, unable to help himself, but pulled away too soon. She opened her eyes when he peeled her hands off his body, and even through her lust-filled haze, she could see the conflicting emotions in his eyes.

Sasuke shook his head when she leaned into him again, needing the friction of their bodies pressed together. With great effort, he hauled her off his lap and stood, leaving her staring dumbfounded after him.

"I can't," he told her, voice hoarse.

Her body was on fire. What the hell was he saying? "Yes, you can."

"No. You're drunk."

Sakura shook her head and the room swayed around her. "I'm not."

He smirked at her, but it was pained. "Yes, you are. I'm not having sex with you while you're drunk."

"But I want to."

"No. You'll regret it in the morning. I don't want to screw this up with you, Sakura." He turned and strode to the kitchen to pick up his keys. "I think I should take you home."

Her desire quickly turned to anger, and she glared at him. "Then why the hell did you bring me here in the first place? We should have just stayed in the club!"

"I don't like clubs. Besides, I didn't think that was your scene."

The fact he knew that about her rankled. "It's not, but I was having fun."

He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, piercing her with a look. "Yeah, because random men gyrating against you is so much fun."

Why was the man so infuriating? "You should have just taken me straight home then, instead of bringing me here!"

"That's my mistake. I didn't think you would jump my bones the moment we got inside."

Sakura wanted to yell at him. She wanted to scream and wail and pin him to the floor until he surrendered. But the rational part of her brain that had been absent ever since he arrived at the bar peeked through, telling her he was right to have stopped when he did. Her shoulders dropped in defeat and she pouted. "I should have agreed to the movie."

Sasuke made his way back to where she was sitting and grabbed her hand, helping her to her feet with a chuckle. "I'm not complaining that you didn't, doc." He kissed her hungrily for a second before pulling away, too quickly for Sakura's liking. "Where do you live? I'll drop you off."

She told him and they walked out the door, Sasuke still holding firmly onto her hand. He geared her up, helped her onto the bike and started the engine. Sakura shut her eyes, holding him close the whole ride home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really, really hope ya'll liked this one. I'm worried it won't be well liked, so I hope I get proved wrong, ^.^"  
> I'm posting early because I've been on fire with this story lately and I just really wanted to share the next chapter with ya'll.  
> Please leave a review if you enjoyed this chapter. And thank you to everyone who has commented so far. I read all of them and each one makes me happy. <3


	10. Chapter 10

Crap.

Crap, crap, crap.

A jackhammer was pounding away at Sakura's skull, but that was the least of her worries. Memories of the previous evening filtered through her mind, and Sakura wanted to crawl into a hole and die. Did she really jump Sasuke in his living room? God, she had humped him like a dog, practically begging him to have sex with her.

_What the hell is wrong with me?_

What did Sasuke want? He had gone to the club, thanks to Ino's invitation—something Sakura would not forget anytime soon—and had, what? Accepted her apology. Then he took her back to his place and turned down sex. Could he be any more confusing?

It was Sakura's first full weekend off in a long time, but she wasn't the kind of person to sleep in. She slid out of bed, her headache forcing her to leave the comfort of her sheets to find aspirin. Maybe after she had calmed down, the night's events wouldn't seem too bad…

_Who am I kidding?_ she thought with a groan. _I can't face him again._ She felt humiliated that she had acted in such a deplorable manner. As a doctor, Sakura knew that her sexual desire for him had increased due to the alcohol and adrenaline running through her veins, but that still didn't make her feel better about what she had done.

She swallowed the aspirin with a glass of water and headed to her bathroom. If she couldn't sleep in, then she would just have to get started on her chores. Her phone rang, Ino's smiling face appearing on the screen.

"So, how did it go with your hot patient?" Ino asked by way of greeting. The blonde sounded chipper, considering she wasn't normally a morning person.

Sakura groaned and she slumped against the couch, the bathroom forgotten. "Don't even talk about it, Ino. I'm disgusted with myself."

"What happened? Did you pass out after seeing him naked?" Ino chuckled darkly. "Because I would _not_ be surprised. He looks like he would be hung like a go—"

"Ino, stop! TMI woman!" Sakura's face burned at the thought, the memories of the previous night rushing back to her mind. "We didn't even do anything. Well, not really anyway."

"You had that hot piece of ass in front of you and you did _nothing?_ What the hell is wrong with you?" Her voice had raised multiple octaves, evidence of her disbelief.

"It wasn't me who put a stop to it. I was drunk and horny as hell and we were making out on his couch when he just… stopped." It was embarrassing having to recount her failed sexcapade, but she needed to tell Ino. Her best friend was a pain in the ass, but she also knew what to say when Sakura needed help. Most of the time.

"What? He stopped? Sakura, please tell me you weren't wearing your granny panties. They are such a turn off."

"Can you tone it down, Ino? My head is already sore enough as it is. And no, I was not wearing granny panties. I don't even own granny panties."

Ino snorted. "I beg to differ. I have seen your underwear and they are not sexy. At all."

"You are so annoying. Why did I pick up again?" The desire to reach through the phone line and strangle her best friend was suddenly overwhelming.

"You were about to tell me why your hot patient dropped you like a piece of trash while you were getting hot and heavy."

Sakura sighed, humiliation still burning bright within her. "He said he didn't want to have sex with me while I was drunk."

"Wow. Point to Hunky Hottie," Ino remarked, sounding impressed. "Good on him for being a decent human being."

Sakura agreed, but all his decency did was make her feel worse about herself. "His name is Sasuke, Ino. Please stop calling him names like that." She paused. "But Ino, that's not the worst part."

"It's not? Being turned down by that juicy piece of—sorry—by Sasuke, wasn't the worst part of your evening?"

Sakura groaned and buried her head into a cushion. If she never saw Sasuke again it would be too soon. "I practically begged him for sex, Ino. I've never been more embarrassed and ashamed in my life."

Ino switched to her placating voice, though Sakura knew the blonde was enjoying every moment of her suffering. "Sakura, you can't blame yourself for your out-of-control sex drive last night. It's been so long since you've been with someone, no one would fault you for acting like a bitch in heat. You were drunk and he was hot. There was no way you could have controlled yourself."

"You have been spending way too much time with Kiba. You're disgusting."

Ino's voice was smug as she replied, "Oh honey, you should know by now that's all me."

Unfortunately, she did, which just made it worse. "But seriously, Ino. I don't think I can face him after last night. What would I even say to him? 'Sorry for dry humping you on your couch when you tried to watch a movie with me'?"

Ino's laugh filtered through the phone. She was getting way too much enjoyment out of this. "You could do that. Or better yet, you could push him into a supply cupboard and finish what you started." When Sakura spluttered a protest, Ino added, "Or you could pretend it never happened, and just talk to him like normal. I don't know girl—let him make the first move. If he mentions it, then combust into flames. If he doesn't, then go along with it and don't say anything either."

"I've already told him we're not suited for each other. What if he thinks my coming onto him means I changed my mind?"

_"Have_ you changed your mind?"

"Yes. No. I don't know!" Sakura threw her free hand in the air in frustration. "You know how busy I am at the hospital—I barely even have time for myself, let alone a boyfriend. And he's Sasuke. He is not the type I normally go for.

"No, because you normally go for quiet nerds," Ino replied. Sakura could feel the blonde rolling her eyes at her. "Trust me, Sakura, this guy will take you places. If you know what I mean."

"You're disgusting Ino. And you're not helping." Sakura huffed and stood up to pace. "I'm not ready for a committed relationship right now. I can barely look after myself—I have loans coming out of my ears, my car's a wreck and I barely get twenty hours of sleep a week because of my job."

"Then just tell him that. Apologize for losing your cool and tell him that you have too much going on right now and you just want to be friends."

Sakura sunk back into the couch. "Yeah, that's probably the best thing to do. But it just seems like the coward's way out—like I'm running from him."

"It is and you are. But hey, you could always move on from friends to FWB."

"I'm not going to be in a 'friends with benefits' relationship with him, Ino," Sakura replied sternly. "He told me he likes me. I can't play with his feelings like that."

"What if he lets you?"

What if he lets her? Was Sakura willing to have a casual dalliance with Sasuke? Did she even know _how?_ Sakura had only ever been in fully committed relationships. The thought of having casual sex with someone made her feel dirty.

She shook her head, her headache starting up again. "I don't know. I'm starting to think about it too much. Let's change the topic before my head explodes. How was _your_ night?"

The dreamy sigh that answered her was all the information Sakura needed, and she immediately regretted asking. "You wouldn't believe what Kiba and I got up to after you two crazy kids left. God, Sakura, he is so naughty and I love it."

.

.

.

Sakura peered tentatively around the door, checking to see if Sasuke was visiting his mother. She couldn't _not_ see Mikoto just because she was terrified of running into her son, but Sakura was also terrified of running into her son.

She breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the room empty, besides the dark-haired woman on the bed, of course. She decided to take a moment and let her heart settle to a steady rhythm before heading inside.

A head appeared, craning over her shoulder, and she jumped, stumbling backwards into their arms. "S-S-Sasuke?"

He righted her, his arms falling from her waist as she found her balance. He leaned back on his heels with a smirk, eyeing her appreciatively like she wasn't wearing her unflattering hospital scrubs. "How you doing, doc?"

Embarrassed. Mortified. Ashamed. Humiliated. Those words ran through her mind, but she refused to voice them. She couldn't let him know that she had regretted her decisions Saturday night, though by the look on his face—and the fact that he had just caught her trying to hide from him—she guessed he already had a pretty good idea as to how she was feeling.

Sakura plastered a smile on her face, but she knew it looked forced. "I'm doing great, Sasuke. Thanks for asking." She stepped away from him and pointed over her shoulder. "I was just on my way somewhere. I'll, uh, see you later."

"You're not going to say hello?" he asked, indicating the room she was retreating from. He seemed amused at her flustered state, his smirk widening as she shuffled awkwardly from foot to foot.

The laugh that spilled out of her was fake even to her own ears, but she couldn't stop. She sounded like a hysterical mental patient. "Oh, no. I was just passing by. I'll say hello to Mikoto later. Don't mind me and go in." She made a shooing motion with her hands and turned away, ready to flee.

"You forgot something, doc."

"What?" She turned back to him just as hands gripped her face, and then his lips were on hers. Her eyes remained wide as he pulled away.

"That," he replied, a satisfied smirk on his face. He turned and held up a hand in parting, heading into his mother's room. "See you later."

It took everything in Sakura to keep her legs upright. She wanted to lean against the wall and slide onto the floor, her body a puddle of mush after that surprise attack. What the hell was that? What did it mean?

_He doesn't think we're dating now, does he? What am I going to do?_ Sakura turned so abruptly her long, pink hair smacked her in the face at the motion. She marched with urgency down the hall; she needed to talk to Ino again. Stat!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am loving all of your comments - it's so nice to hear you're enjoying this story and they motivate me to keep going, so please keep it up. XD


	11. Chapter 11

She had to talk to him, to let him know he had gotten the wrong idea about them. Sakura knew it was her fault—she was the one who had thrown herself at him—but it had been a mistake. A stupid, drunken, incredibly hot mistake. One that should never be repeated.

It wasn't hard to find him. Sakura had quickly learned his schedule after his mother was admitted and knew the times he would be at the hospital visiting his mother. Even so, it took a long time for her to build up the courage and pull him aside.

On one of his visits, she waited until he was about to leave before entering the room. She said a quick hello to Mikoto before turning to Sasuke and asking if they could speak for a minute, in private. Once they left the room and moved down the hall—away from Mikoto's attentive eyes—Sasuke propped himself against the wall and pulled her close, leaning down with a smirk to kiss her.

Sakura pushed against his chest, even as her heart did a summersault at his touch. "Sasuke, this isn't why I called you out," she told him, doing her best to sound stern despite the erratic beating of her heart. "We need to talk."

He immediately dropped his arms, his eyes narrowing at her words. Never in the history of man had those four words proceeded something good. "What?"

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "I'm afraid I've given you the wrong impression of us with my behavior on the weekend," she said. "I'm really sorry about that, Sasuke, but my decision hasn't changed. I can't go out with you."

Sasuke stared at her for a long moment. Sakura thought he would get mad at her but after an uncomfortable silence he looked away and nodded sharply. "Fine, whatever. Is that all?"

Sakura reached out to grab his sleeve before he could walk away, her eyes pricking at his dismissive words. It would've hurt less if he had gotten mad and yelled at her. "Please don't shut me out, Sasuke. I still care about you and I want you to know that I'm here whenever you ever need someone to talk to." She sent him an imploring look. "I just… I'm not ready for a relationship right now. I've got a lot on my plate at the moment. It's not a good time for me." She knew it was a weak excuse—really, so many people found time to date while being busy—but it was what she had to tell him.

It wasn't a lie. She _did_ have a lot on her plate, and she was constantly stressed about her never-ending loans, but it wasn't the whole truth. Sakura had spent several nights wide awake, thinking about why she was so against having a relationship with Sasuke, until she finally came to a conclusion.

She was scared.

Sakura was scared of falling in love with him only for him to realize she wasn't his type. She knew they were like fire and ice—polar opposites—and she knew it would only be a matter of time before his attraction to her wore off. Sakura even suspected that part of his feelings for her were because of his mother; just as he projected his feelings into fighting in order to lessen the pain of Mikoto's condition, Sakura was worried he was doing the same thing with her. So, in order to protect her heart, Sakura decided to keep him at arm's length.

Sasuke gave her another long look, his jaw clenched. "What do you want, then?" he finally asked.

It took everything in her not to twist her hands together and look away under his intense stare. "I thought we could be friends."

"Friends?" Sasuke sent her an incredulous look. "I don't want to be _friends_ with you, Sakura."

"I'm sorry, but that's all I can offer you. Please Sasuke. At least for your mother's sake."

His eyes narrowed at her for using his mother against him. He let out a harsh breath. "Do you really think we can be friends?"

Sakura nodded, even as her heart protested the thought. "I think we could try."

He was silent again for some time, but finally he replied, "Fine. If you think we're capable of being friends, I'll play nice."

Relief flooded through her and she let out the breath she had been holding. She could handle being his friend. Couldn't she? "Thank you, Sasuke." She checked her watch, noticing it was almost time for her to see her next patient. "I'm going to see Mikoto quickly before I get back to work. I'll see you around?"

"Sure, doc. See you around."

.

.

.

Her Ford was a bomb. There, she admitted it, though it felt almost like a betrayal to do so. _At least it isn't a flat this time,_ Sakura thought wryly. _Though I don't think this is an improvement._

She had been driving home from work when she noticed smoke wafting from the bonnet, so light at first she thought she was imagining it. The smoke grew thicker though, and Sakura quickly pulled to the side of the road, knowing it would be better for her to stop than continue.

It was late, almost eleven in the evening, and Sakura didn't know what to do. She could call a tow truck, but that might be unnecessary. For all she knew, the smoke was innocuous, and she was worrying too much. Still, cars don't start smoking for no reason, and Sakura would feel more comfortable having an assessment done so she knew it was safe to drive.

The decision was simple, really, but still she hesitated to call. Her and Sasuke had managed to find some middle ground and were able to spend time in one another's presence without it feeling too awkward. His mother was out of the hospital, having finished her first round of treatment, and had been home now for a little over two weeks. Although Sakura was finding it easier to be in Sasuke's presence, she hadn't yet visited the older Uchiha at her home. She knew it was cowardly, but she didn't want Sasuke to get the wrong idea by her showing up at his house. So, despite her desire to see Mikoto, she had refrained from visiting.

Finally, Sakura dug her phone out of her handbag—she couldn't sit on the side of the road all night—and dialed Sasuke's number. She didn't think he would be asleep yet, but with his mum home he might be going to bed earlier than usual.

Thankfully, he picked up after only three rings. "Doc? Everything okay?"

Sakura hadn't been feeling all that put-out over her car going haywire on her again, but the concern in his voice knocked her for a loop and suddenly she felt like crying. Instead of breaking down, she cleared her throat before asking, "Did I wake you?"

"No. What's wrong, Sakura? I'm betting you didn't call me to chat."

Hearing him say those words stung, though she knew they shouldn't. She had never called him before, despite having his number for weeks now. Did it make her a horrible person to call him now, when she needed help? Would he think she was taking advantage of his feelings for her?

The urge to cry hit her again, this time for a completely different reason. "Sorry Sasuke. I shouldn't have bothered you. I'll hang up."

His impatient sigh echoed down the phone line. "Don't you dare. I don't care if you called for help, Sakura, so just tell me what happened."

How was she supposed to keep him at an arm's length when he said things like that? His words were rough, but she could sense his sincerity. "My car is smoking," she said, biting down on her lip to keep it from quivering.

He swore and she heard rustling, as though he was moving about. "Where are you? I'll be there soon." Sakura told him and he hang up before she could thank him.

She looked at her phone, still working her bottom lip with her teeth, though the urge to cry had left. She was nervous. The more time she spent in his presence, the stronger her feelings for him grew. But she was still scared to say anything about her growing feelings. If she did, Sakura knew Sasuke wouldn't accept her condition to be 'just friends', and she still wasn't sure if his feelings were genuine or just a by-product of his constant stress for his mother. Sakura didn't want to put her heart on the line just for him to dump her as soon as his mother recovered.

Sasuke arrived in under ten minutes, his sleek motorbike pulling up behind her old, beat-up Ford. She watched in the rearview mirror as he pulled his helmet off, shaking his raven hair and swiping his hand through the dark locks. Sakura's breath caught, the sight of him in the glow of the streetlights mesmerizing her.

He hopped off his bike, shrugged out of his jacket, and dug into the compartment to retrieve his tools. Sakura left the car before he made it to her door and sent him a nervous smile. "Thank you for coming, Sasuke," she said, relief coloring her words. "I really appreciate it."

He nodded, his dark eyes intense as he looked at her. "Sure thing, doc." He pointed to the door she had just exited from. "You wanna pop the hood so I can have a look?"

"Oh. Of course." She hurriedly turned to do as he asked, cheeks flushing. Had she expected him to move into her personal space and do it for her?

He attached a portable light to the inside of the hood so he could see and bent forward to scan the engine. Sakura didn't want to bother him, so she sat back in her chair, legs dangling outside the car as she waited for him to finish.

"Your car is a piece of crap." His voice carried to her from where he worked, the words rankling her despite her similar thoughts earlier.

"That may be, but it's all I can afford right now. As long as it gets me from point A to point B, I'm happy."

She thought she heard him snort, but cars were passing by them and creating enough noise for her to wonder if she had just imagined it. "You're a doctor. Shouldn't you be rolling in dough?"

If only. "Unfortunately, no. I'm still paying off student loans, not to mention I'll probably be paying for college for the rest of my life. Medical school isn't cheap, you know."

He was silent then. Or maybe he replied, but she just didn't hear it. Either way, Sakura let him work, her legs swinging as she waited to hear the verdict of what would become of her precious vehicle. After a while, he appeared from behind the hood of her car, wiping his hands on a cloth.

"Your carburetor is leaking," he told her. "Have you seen a difference in your car's performance?"

Sakura didn't know what a 'carburetor' was, but she trusted his expertise. "Yeah. Sometimes the car takes a while to turn on. And it's been feeling a little rougher lately. Not as smooth to drive as usual."

"How long has that been happening?"

Sakura shrugged. "A few weeks, maybe more."

Reaching up to rub his temple, Sasuke sent her a hard glare. "Why haven't you taken it to get looked at yet? It's dangerous to leave it unchecked."

Sasuke was menacing when he was mad, but Sakura didn't cower in the face of his glare. Instead, she sent him one of her own. "In case you haven't noticed, I've been a bit busy. The last thing on my mind on my rare days off is taking my car to a mechanic's."

"So, you'd rather drive it into the ground? Then how would you get to work? Better yet, you could have an accident if you don't keep your car in good repair." His eyes were hard as they stared at her. "I thought you were supposed to be smart, doc."

His accusation made her bristle, but she couldn't fault his words. Her eyes dropped to her feet before looking back at him, cheeks burning. "I didn't think of that."

"When's your next day off?" His voice was still hard, his jaw tight, but his glare lessened.

She thought for a moment, trying to recall what the current day was. "Thursday," she told him. That was only two days from now.

Sasuke nodded, his jaw unclenching, and he unfolded his arms. "You're taking this to my shop on Thursday, whether you want to or not. There's not much I can do right now, but it should be fine until then."

Sakura breathed a sigh of relief. She knew postponing a service had been a bad idea, but besides the lack of time, she also didn't have the money. Still, it would be dangerous driving around in a faulty car—not just for her, but for others as well. As a doctor, that should have been her first concern.

"Fine, I'll bring it to you on Thursday. I'm sorry I let it get this bad." She felt contrite and embarrassed. She should have known better. Her eyes moved back to her swinging feet, unable to look at him anymore.

"Next time, tell me when you notice your car playing up." His voice was commanding, and Sakura nodded in assent. When he seemed satisfied, he stepped forward, leaning into the car and crowding her space, his hands braced on the edge of the door.

Her head snapped up in surprise and she sent him a confused look. "What are you doing?"

A sly smirk graced his lips. "You didn't think I would fix your car without payment?"

"Oh." Sakura felt stupid she hadn't thought of that. Of course he would want to get paid—she had disturbed him so late at night. "How much do you want?" she asked, looking around for her purse.

Fingers gripped her chin and he pulled her back to face him again. "Wha—" Her question was cut off when Sasuke darted forward, his lips landing on hers with enough force to curl her toes. He pushed himself into her until she was leaning against the middle console. The buckle of her seatbelt dug into her back, and she regretted not having waited in the backseat.

He pulled back and she stared at him, jaw slack. "What was that for?" she asked, a little breathlessly.

"My payment," he replied with a smirk.

She was momentarily speechless as she gazed at his smug face. "You said you would play nice."

His pierced brow quirked in amusement. "You really believed that?"

Part of her was thankful that he hadn't played nice, because in that moment she wanted nothing more than to kiss him again. She licked her lips unconsciously. "Was that… enough payment?"

Sasuke stared at her mouth, his eyes dark pools of desire. "Not even close," he growled.

Half of her wanted to grab him by his collar and give him all the payment he wanted, but the other half reminded her they were supposed to be _friends._ "Sasuke," she whispered. It was meant to be a warning but instead her voice came out as a breathy moan.

Taking that as an invitation, he leaned forward again, his lips parting hers to delve deep into her mouth. She sighed at the contact, the press of the seat buckle barely registering as he sucked her tongue into his mouth. Heat pooled at her core and she moaned, her hands finding his hair and digging in, drawing him closer.

Sakura may not have consumed any alcohol, but she felt drunk as she clung to him, tasting him on her tongue and feeling his body against hers. The desire to move into the backseat and rip his clothes off was almost overwhelming. A soft whimper escaped her mouth when he teasingly nipped at her bottom lip before leaving a trail of hot, wet kisses across her jaw until he reached her neck. He bit the sensitive skin below her ear and she gasped, the sensation having sent a jolt of lust straight to her core.

A car horn blared, and the driver shouted obscenities out the window at them as he passed. Sakura pulled back, her desire instantly replaced with mortification. What the hell was she doing?

"I, uh, should go. I've got an early shift in the morning and I need to sleep." Her voice was hoarse, her cheeks burned, and she looked everywhere but at him. "Thank you for helping, Sasuke. I really do appreciate it."

He retreated, but she didn't miss the flash of hunger in his eyes as he stepped out of the car. "Anytime, doc." He moved back to the front of her car and closed the hood, packing up his tools before standing by her door again. "Mum wants to know why you haven't been over her since she's been home. She wants to see you, so stop trying to avoid me and go visit her."

Her blush deepened at being called out, but she couldn't deny it. She met his eyes and gave him a small smile. "Fine." She closed the door and wound down the window, having to manually crank it her car was that old. She sent him another smile, one larger and more genuine than the first. "Thank you Sasuke. Please tell your mum I'll visit her soon."

With a wave goodbye, she pulled away from the curb, watching him in the rearview mirror until he disappeared from sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to post this chapter earlier, but I'm terrified of providing a bad chapter for my readers after all the comments I've received saying how ya'll are enjoying it, so I kept it to myself for a couple extra days. I read through it about 10 times, editing bits of it with each pass through.  
> Please keep up the kind and encouraging comments. I love all of them. I appreciate everyone who is reading and enjoying this story. <3


	12. Chapter 12

Mikoto's hair was starting to fall out. Sakura knew how much it affected the older woman, even if she pretended to be fine with it. She had thought about finding a wig for her, but she didn't want Mikoto thinking she had to cover herself up. The hair loss wasn't important. What was important was that the treatment worked—which so far, it had been.

Sakura had accidentally walked in on her during a moment of weakness, startling Mikoto as she sat crying in her bed. Mikoto had begged Sakura not to tell Sasuke about it, not wanting to bother her busy son. Sakura agreed not to say anything, but she silently promised herself she wouldn't allow Mikoto time to feel sorry for herself and had decided to spend her off time at work with the older Uchiha.

"Really Sakura, you don't have to stay with me." Mikoto said, her voice tired as she lay back in her hospital bed.

Sakura was sitting by Mikoto's bed during her break. She had been having lunch with Mikoto as much as she could, a silent promise to the older woman that she was supporting her.

She glanced up from the medical book she was reading, sending Mikoto a bright smile. "I enjoy visiting you." She leaned forward and whispered, "You're my favorite patient, but don't tell anyone. I'm not supposed to be biased." Sakura winked at her.

Humor danced in Mikoto's eyes. "If we're telling secrets, then I have one of my own. You're my favorite doctor, but don't tell Tsunade. I wouldn't want to upset her." Mikoto grinned at Sakura and the two women laughed together.

Mikoto placed her hand on Sakura's, her eyes turning somber. "I just wished you would spend more time here when Sasuke was present."

Sakura flinched at her words but managed a smile. "I suppose our schedules don't really match up," she lied.

Mikoto gave her a knowing look. "Don't pretend I can't see you checking your watch every time you visit me to make sure you leave before Sasuke shows up. I'm not silly, dear."

"I know you aren't. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply that you were." Sakura screamed internally. She had thought she was being covert when she checked the time, but she should have known the older woman would know what she was up to.

"You don't need to apologize, dear, but I would like to know why you avoid him. I thought the two of you were getting along."

"We do!" Sakura insisted, hating the sadness she saw in Mikoto's eyes. "It's just…"

"You're not sure if he's right for you?" When Sakura's eyes widened, Mikoto laughed softly. "Don't look so surprised, dear. I can see what's going on between you both. I've never seen Sasuke so attentive towards a girl before—except me, of course." She cocked her head to the side and gave Sakura's hand another pat. "I know my son has feelings for you, Sakura, but you are hesitant. Why?"

Talking about her and Sasuke's relationship—or lack thereof—with his mother wasn't something Sakura had planned on doing today, and she felt incredibly awkward with the older woman's keen gaze on her. Her leg started fidgeting, expelling the nervous energy suddenly coursing through her.

When Sakura didn't say anything, Mikoto asked, "Are you afraid of him?"

"What? No, of course not!" What kind of question was that? She had never once been frightened of Sasuke.

The older woman smiled, happy with her answer. "I know he scares some people with his appearance. But he is a good kid at heart, even if he doesn't show it."

Sakura couldn't help but smile at that. "Yes, I agree. I've seen his kind heart firsthand."

"Then what is it if you don't mind me asking? What is holding you back?"

It didn't look like she was going to be able to bypass Mikoto's curiosity. Sakura took a few seconds to get her thoughts in order before speaking. "To be honest, I keep telling him I'm not ready for a boyfriend because of my busy schedule. And that's partially true; I worry that I won't have enough time for him, and he will get tired of me. But, if I'm honest… I also worry that his feelings for me are a way of distracting him from his worry about you."

"Do you really think that, Sakura?" Sakura hated seeing the disappointed look in Mikoto's eyes. "You must not know Sasuke very well yet if you believe that." She patted her hand. "I know my son and I assure you that his feelings are genuine."

"Even if they are, that won't stop him from getting sick of me when he realizes that I'm boring and never have enough time for him." She didn't think she would be able to handle it if Sasuke ever got sick of her.

Mikoto's gaze was kind but firm. "You're not giving him enough credit. Do you think he would be that shallow?"

Sakura shook her head. She knew Sasuke wasn't shallow; he was kind and genuine, despite what his appearance might suggest. And if what Mikoto said was true—if his feelings for her _were_ the real deal—what was she supposed to do then?

Sakura didn't want to talk about Sasuke anymore. She was about ten seconds away from crying and she refused to break down in front of his mother. Still, she didn't want to offend the older woman. "I'm sorry, Mikoto. I don't mean to insult him. These are just my own insecurities. I dated someone back when I was in med school. If I wasn't studying then I was working, and my boyfriend didn't like that I prioritized him last. I admit, I could have tried harder, but it had taken a lot for me to get into med school and I didn't want anything to ruin the opportunity. In the end, he dumped me because I was never around. I'm worried that could happen again. Sasuke is so…" she waved her hand in the air, unable to think of the appropriate word. " _Sasuke._ He is fearless and exciting, and I don't know if he'll like me when his initial attraction wears off."

She looked at her watch and stood up abruptly, realizing her break had ended ten minutes ago. "Sorry Mikoto, but I need to get back to work."

"I understand. I'm sorry for prying so much, dear. I won't ask again, but I hope you'll talk to Sasuke about how you're feeling."

Mikoto's kind but sad eyes bored into her and a lump formed in Sakura's throat. She gave a sharp nod, knowing she wouldn't dare bring up her feelings with Sasuke, before turning around and walking out of the room with as much dignity as she could muster.

.

.

.

"How are you going, Sasuke?" Mikoto asked her son during his visit.

He had seen his pink haired doctor scuttle away as he was heading towards his mother's room. He'd nodded in greeting and slowed his steps to talk with her, but she just gave him a tight smile and continued on her way without pausing.

It frustrated Sasuke how she continued to avoid him. She had eventually visited Mikoto at their home during her recovery but had made sure she wasn't ever alone with him in a room. Which was a shame, because Sasuke dearly wanted some alone time with her. He knew, despite her protests, that she wouldn't push him away if he pulled her close and kissed her the way he constantly longed to do.

Sasuke gave his mother a small smile, knowing he wouldn't be able to lie to her. She knew him too well. "Frustrated. Annoyed. Angry." He let out a harsh breath. "Take your pick."

The sad look she gave him almost broke his heart. He hated seeing his mother sad. "Have you had a chance to talk to her?"

"I barely even see her," he replied with a scoff. "She doesn't give me a chance to talk to her." Sasuke eyed his mother and hesitantly asked, "Have you spoken to her?"

"We had a small chat, yes. But I don't think it's my place to say anything. I wouldn't want to betray her trust."

"Can't you just tell me why she's being so stubborn? I'm running out of patience." Truthfully, he had run out of patience a long time ago. But there was nothing he could do if Sakura continued to resist him.

His mother's voice was kind, but her words confused him. "I think she's just a little scared."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, another scoff at the tip of his tongue. "What, like I'm some kind of big bad wolf or something?" Did she think he would huff and puff and blow her house down? Sakura knew what kind of person he was and she hadn't seemed scared before—angry yes, but never scared.

"Nothing like that, my dear." Mikoto said with a smile. She paused, her eyes lighting up in a way that Sasuke knew meant trouble. "Why don't you ask her out to dinner?"

Sasuke snorted. "She barely gives me a chance to talk to her. She definitely won't go out to dinner with me."

Her smile only widened at his words. "What if you told her I suggested it as a way to thank her for looking after me? She _has_ done a lot since I've been admitted, and I know she is too nice to say no to me."

Sometimes his mother scared him with her calculating ways. But in this situation, Sasuke was glad for it. He let a smirk grace his lips at the thought of spending an evening with his doctor, even if he had to trick her into going. "That's a great idea." He reached over to grab her hand, a genuine smile on his lips. "I'm happy you approve of her."

Mikoto's smile was beautiful and Sasuke was once again struck with how much he loved her. "Of course. She is a lovely girl and I believe she is just what you need." She gave his hand a squeeze and her voice dropped to an almost-whisper. "Itachi would adore her."

A lump formed in Sasuke's throat at the mention of his brother. He knew Itachi would have loved Sakura—they were both kind and compassionate people—and Sasuke often wished they could have met. A scenario formed in his mind suddenly of a family dinner with all the people he cared about and cherished most; his mother, Itachi and Sakura.

It was crazy for Sasuke to admit, but Sakura had become one of the few people who held part of his heart. He had always been attracted to her, but at the beginning he was just having fun. He had enjoyed the way she responded to him, her no-nonsense attitude and how she wasn't intimidated by his presence. But it didn't take long for that casual attraction to turn into something deeper, and after he saw how much she cared about his mother, despite barely knowing her, Sasuke knew he wouldn't be able to forget about her. Now, if only she could share his feelings, they wouldn't have to be doing this constant push-and-pull.

Sasuke leaned forward to place a kiss on the back of his mother's palm. Their conversation turned to other topics—his work, her recovery, how Naruto was doing—but Sasuke continued to think of his upcoming evening with Sakura. She didn't know it yet, but they would soon be enjoying their very first date together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm SO sorry this has taken so long. I hope no one sees this chapter as a 'filler'. I wanted to share how both Sasuke and Sakura are feeling at this point in time. I know Sakura is still being an idiot, but I can't have her suddenly drop her worries.  
> I've also read your comments and I have to say, you have no idea what's coming. I just hope the way I've decided to take the story doesn't disappoint anyone.  
> As always, thank you for your continued support and please feel free to leave a comment if you are enjoying the story.


	13. Chapter 13

Halfway through Mikoto's second round of treatments, Sasuke approached Sakura and asked her out to dinner. Apparently, his mother had suggested they should have a night off and eat together—if what Sasuke said could be trusted. Sakura agreed on one condition—that it wasn't counted as a date. Sasuke had conceded, and instead told her it was to thank her for looking after his mother.

He picked her up on his motorbike, looking incredible in a pair of faded jeans. He wore his bike jacket, but she suspected he wore a black t-shirt underneath, since that was all he seemed to own in his closet. She let him fit her helmet in place and help her slip into his spare jacket, allowing her eyes the chance to graze over his features. It amazed her that it had only been four months since he came into her life; sometimes it felt as though they had known each other for years.

Sakura was glad she hadn't worn a dress. She didn't want him thinking that she thought it was a date and so had opted with wearing a pair of pink high-rise pants coupled with a white crop top instead of one of her few dresses she owned. Even so, his appreciative once-over felt intimate and she shivered when his dark eyes met her emerald ones.

Even though he assured her he didn't view their evening together as a date, Sasuke still insisted on paying for her meal, despite her protests. He took her to a quaint little Italian place, and Sakura very much liked the cozy ambience of it. Although, as she looked around at the other patrons—all who seemed to be couples—she wondered if their 'not date' was really an actual date after all.

It was awkward, at first. Conversation was stilted, with neither party knowing exactly what to say to each other. But after a while, the tension eased, and they were able to talk normally. It was so nice, in fact, that Sakura started believing that maybe being friends with him was possible after all.

Sasuke asked about her parents, and at first Sakura was worried because of her comment to him all those weeks ago. When she didn't see any lingering sign of hurt in his eyes, only plain curiosity, she told him about her family and her upbringing. She had lived a happy life, with two parents that loved and cared for her deeply. They had never been well off—both parents had to work full-time jobs to keep food on the table and a roof over their heads—but they spent all their free time on the weekends with her. Her mother had been diagnosed with breast cancer when Sakura was in middle school, which was when Sakura chose to study medicine. Her mother had recovered, but Sakura's desire to help people never wavered, and she spent much of her youth studying and preparing for medical school.

Sakura worried all her talk of a happy family life would upset Sasuke since she knew a little about his family, but it didn't seem to bother him. He asked questions—what was it like living in a small country town, if she was a nerd in school, how did she feel moving into the city without her parents—and smirked at some of the stories she recounted from her youth.

Braving the subject of his family was a delicate task, but Sakura was curious and wanted to learn more about him and his childhood. "What was your brother like?" she asked, after swallowing a bite of her pasta. When Sasuke visibly tensed at the question, she rushed to say, "Sorry. You don't need to tell me. Forget I asked."

He took a big gulp of his water, his eyes pinned to the candle in the middle of the table—yet another thing that screamed 'actual date' to Sakura. Eventually, his onyx eyes rose to meet hers and a small, sad smile touched his lips. "Itachi was everything I'm not. He was six years older than me and had the world at his feet." Sasuke's smile turned wistful. "After my father abandoned us, Itachi stepped up and became the man of the house. He supported mum and taught me everything a father is supposed to. He was smart and wanted to become a lawyer so he could defend those who had no one else to turn to."

Sakura reached out over the table to grab his hand. The contact seemed to startle him, and he glanced down at their hands before looking back at her. "He sounds like an amazing person."

"He was. My father liked him better than me, always giving him compliments while all he could say about me was what a deadbeat son I was. I never resented my brother though, even if I was jealous of him." Sasuke turned his hand over so he could grasp Sakura's, his food forgotten. "He was always the responsible one. As we got older, he would be studying or looking after mum while I was raising all kinds of hell around town.

"And then a drunk driver plowed into his car on the way home from work one day. Mum's one dependable son was gone, and I'd lost the person who meant more to me than my life." He shook his head with a sad chuckle and gave her a self-deprecating look. "It's shit, isn't it? I hated my brother for dying. Out of the two of us, it should have been me. I was the screw up, the lost cause, and yet he was the one that left."

The desire to cry was almost overwhelming. How could he say that about himself? "Sasuke, stop it. You've been nothing but incredible with Mikoto. I see how much you love her. You're a good son."

"Itachi's death made me worse. Instead of stepping up and helping mum, I lived a debauched life. I partied hard and I fought hard. Almost went to jail a couple of times." He shrugged, his gaze finding their joined hands again. "I guess fighting has always been my go-to when I don't want to deal with my emotions."

"But you didn't stay like that," Sakura said encouragingly.

Sasuke chuckled again. "I came home to find mum and Naruto waiting for me with a damn intervention. Naruto wailed on me for being a horrible son and mum cried. She said if something ever happened to me, she would die. I realized I had been acting like a selfish bastard, wallowing in my grief over my brother's death when mum had lost more than that—she had lost a son." He rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb, watching the movements with his eyes. "I stopped partying, stopped fighting—mostly—and got a proper job. I had always tinkered with cars, and it was easy to find work as a mechanic."

"See," Sakura said, smiling brightly despite the tears still shining in her eyes. "You've come a long way, Sasuke. Your mother has every right to be proud of the man you are today. _I'm_ proud of you." His eyes flickered up to hers and Sakura could see an ocean of emotions swirling behind his dark gaze.

"I'll be the same age as my brother was before he died in a couple of months," he said, his voice growing soft. "I find it hard to believe that soon I will have lived longer than he ever got the chance to."

Every time he talked about his brother was like a knife to the heart for Sakura. She could tell how much Sasuke loved Itachi, and she hated seeing the pain in his eyes and the emotion coating his voice as he spoke of him. "I'm sure that if Itachi could see you now, he would be very proud of you as well, Sasuke."

They stared at each other for a long moment, and Sakura could feel something between them shift. Something so tangible that Sakura could have reached out and grabbed it. It both scared and thrilled her, and when Sasuke opened his mouth to speak, she was ready to say yes to anything he asked of her.

"How is everything here, folks? Can I get you another drink?" Their waiter asked, shattering the moment. Sasuke closed his mouth and sent the man a glare, his voice tight as he answered.

They finished their meals in silence, Sakura having to extract her hand from his in order to eat. Sasuke paid for their meals and took her hand to lead her outside. Sakura would have scolded him for it—reminding him this wasn't a date—but they had come a long way tonight. He had confided in her and Sakura wanted him to have this little bit of comfort, if it helped him feel better. She also couldn't deny that she liked how his hand felt intwined with hers.

The motorbike was parked a couple of streets away and they walked together in comfortable silence. Sasuke's thumb was rubbing circles on the back of her hand again, and Sakura wondered if he was meaning to do it or if it was a subconscious gesture.

Sasuke stiffened as he saw a group of people approach, and his hand tightened in hers, pulling her backwards so she was shielded by his body. Sakura glanced up at him in alarm and saw his jaw locked tight as he glared at the approaching figures.

There were four of them—all men—and they stopped just before they passed the couple. One of the men sized Sasuke up and down before spotting Sakura. He grinned, his gaze slowly perusing her body with an intensity that made her shiver.

Sasuke pushed Sakura further behind him. "Eyes on me Sakon, unless you want me to put you back in the hospital."

The man—Sakon—laughed, as though such a threat didn't faze him at all. "Simmer down, Sasuke. I was just curious about that pretty piece you have hiding there. What's your name, sweetheart?" His tone was friendly, but Sakura didn't like the look in his eyes as he watched her.

A sound very similar to a growl emanated from Sasuke's throat as another man, identical to Sakon, stepped towards them. He held up his hand in a wave, grinning at Sakura. "Excuse my brother, miss. He doesn't have the chance to talk to pretty ladies very often. The name's Ukon."

Sakura relaxed a little and tried to step out from behind Sasuke, but he held her in place, his glare having swung to the new speaker. "Back up, Ukon. I can beat all four of you. Don't test me."

"Alright then," Sakon sneered. "Let's have at it. We've been waiting to get you back for last time, anyway." His eyes slid to Sakura again. "Once we beat you to a bloody pulp, we'll have some fun with your girlfriend. Wouldn't that be nice, sweetheart?"

Sasuke's hand was squeezing Sakura's so much it hurt, but she didn't dare say anything. She was afraid that if he let go, he would start a fight with these people, and she refused to let that happen. She stuck her head out from behind his back and cleared her throat. "Excuse me," she said in her most mature I'm-a-doctor-and-you-have-to-listen-to-what-I-say voice. "You're disturbing our date. If you don't want me calling the police on you then I suggest you leave us alone. Right now."

The big guy at the back of the group laughed. "Little girl has a temper. I like them feisty."

Sakura barely had time to react before Sasuke was surging forward, hands balled into fists. She reached out and grabbed his shirt before he had the chance to take more than two steps. She could feel his body shaking with rage under her grip. "Stop it, Sasuke. They're not worth it." She slipped her hand back into his and attempted to tug him away from the group. "Just take me home, please." She knew she was manipulating his feelings for her, but in that moment she didn't care. She only hoped his feelings for her were stronger than his desire to beat the men in front of them.

He took a deep breath, holding it for long seconds before exhaling sharply. Then, he squeezed her hand and turned away, pulling her along down the street and away from the four men. They called out to them, shouting jeers and taunts at Sasuke. When that didn't get a rise out of him, they switched to yelling obscenities at Sakura, words horrible enough to make her shudder. Sasuke's body locked up at a particularly graphic sentence thrown her way but Sakura grabbed his arm with her free hand, holding him in place.

"Deep breaths, Sasuke. They're only doing this to aggravate you. Don't stoop to their level." She rubbed the hairs on his arm in a soothing pattern and was grateful when his breathing evened out again.

They made it to the motorbike and Sakura was relieved to see no more signs of the strangers. Sasuke leaned against his bike, sitting at the edge of the seat, and tugged Sakura towards him, taking hold of her other hand. His eyes were still hard when they met hers. "I don't want you going near them, Sakura. Ever. They're dangerous."

She appreciated his protectiveness, but she didn't know if 'dangerous' was the right word. Yes, they had been scary. But they had seemed like four bullies trying to taunt someone into a fight. "I'm sure they're not that bad. You probably just got on their bad side, or something."

He tugged her closer, as though their proximity wasn't enough for him, his eyes not leaving hers. "Remember when we first met?"

Sakura's eyebrows drew together, confused at the sudden topic change. "When you came in injured and refusing treatment? How could I forget?"

"They were the ones that did that to me," he said, inclining his head in the direction they had come from.

She gasped, her eyes widening. "They were the ones who stabbed you?" Her eyes dropped to his side, where she remembered the injury had been. She had the overwhelming desire to touch him there, to make sure he was still okay.

Sasuke nodded his head once. "Yes. If you see any of them, I want you to walk the other way. Don't even talk to them."

His eyes were imploring as they searched hers. She smiled at him softly, letting him know she understood. "Okay. I won't go near them. If I see them, I'll turn around and hightail it out of there."

He breathed a sigh of relief, closing his eyes for a long moment as he composed himself. When he opened them, there was an amused glint hidden in their depths. "You called this a date," he said, smirking at her. His hands left hers to wrap around her waist, tugging her even closer to him.

Sakura's hands landed on his chest as he brought her close to him. She didn't push him away, just rested them there, enjoying the steady beat of his heart against her palms. "That was just for their benefit."

He looked unconvinced. She felt his thumbs hook into the waistband of her pants, finding the bare skin of her back beneath. The movements had her thinking that maybe the appendages had a mind of their own after all.

"You also told me to take you home," he added, the glint in his eyes turning mischievous.

Sakura felt heat trail up her neck to her ears, until her whole face burned. "I didn't mean it like _that_."

He smirked, his amusement at her discomfort almost palpable. He reached under her shirt until his hands pressed against the small of her back, pushing her closer. Sakura wondered how the motorbike was still standing; she was practically leaning against him by now.

"I at least deserve a goodnight kiss."

Sakura gave him a warning look. "Sasuke…"

"Sakura…" he mimicked in the same tone she had used.

She couldn't help the laugh that bubbled forth from her lips. He rarely teased her, and she enjoyed the happy look on his face as he did so now. Her fingers played with the buttons on his shirt, as if they too had a mind of their own, and she smiled at him. "Fine, but just one."

His lips met hers, needing no further invitation, and one of his hands extracted itself from her back to cradle her head. She melted into him, her hands sliding from his chest to wind around his neck and she tightened her hold when his tongue found hers, caressing it playfully. He nipped her bottom lip before delving back into her mouth.

The kiss was slow, sensual, and so much more than Sakura could have asked for. His lips and tongue ignited a fire within her that had her curling her toes and pressing further into him, so much that it threatened to topple the motorbike they leaned against.

When his mouth left hers to trail down her jaw to her neck, Sakura's head fell back against his palm with a sigh. She was glad he was holding her, since she had become boneless against his ministrations and didn't think she would be able to stand on her own.

He sucked the pulse on her neck, just below her ear, and Sakura squirmed in his grasp, a breathy moan escaping her lips. Her arms tightened around his neck, her fingers diving into his luxurious raven locks as she held him against her.

His mouth found hers again, his kiss deepening, becoming more urgent. She managed to break away long enough to whisper, "You said one kiss," before he claimed her lips again.

"This is one kiss," he murmured against her mouth. "It's just really long."

It took everything in her to break away from his lips, but finally she managed it despite her body demanding her to stay right where she was. "We should stop," she panted, taking deep breaths to refill her lungs.

Sasuke's eyes burned into her, so intense she was afraid she would melt right there on the sidewalk. "Let me take you home, Sakura," he whispered, voice hoarse. It was an innocent sentence, but the meaning behind his words were all too clear in his heated stare.

Images of what he could do to her flashed through her mind, causing heat to pool in her belly. The desire to say yes was so strong it almost hurt, but she managed to get her baser desires under control. She worried her bottom lip and his gaze locked onto the gesture. "I don't think that's a good idea."

He drew back, but not enough to release her. His fingers were playing with her back again, the digits delving under her shirt to explore the skin beneath. "It sounds like the perfect idea to me," he growled.

It would be so easy to let him take her home. She _wanted_ him to take her home. But she knew she would regret it if she said yes. Sakura knew she wouldn't just be giving Sasuke her body; she would be giving him her whole heart. And she wasn't ready to do that, not when she wasn't certain he would still want her afterwards.

Sakura hated herself in that moment because she knew she would have to hurt him again. And she didn't want to, not when he had already hurt so much tonight reliving his brother's past. But she also knew she couldn't say yes to him, either.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke," she said, her voice breaking over the words. She wondered if he knew this was as hard for her as it was for him. "I'm really sorry, but I can't."

"What the hell are you waiting for, doc? For me to miraculously become a decent member of society?" He was mad—beyond mad, actually—and he pushed her away from him, standing up so abruptly it almost knocked his bike over.

"Stop that! Stop putting yourself down like that, Sasuke. You know that's not the reason."

He rounded on her, his glare fierce. "Do I? Because I can't think of another damn reason why you don't want me."

_I do want you_ , Sakura thought heatedly. _So badly that it hurts_. "It's not you Sasuke, it's—" Was she really going to use that old cliched 'it's not you, it's me' line? Sasuke knew what the end of her sentence was, even without her finishing it. His eyes turned to flint and he spun away from her, retrieving the helmets and jackets with jerky movements.

He didn't help her into her jacket or put on her helmet like he normally would. Instead, he shoved them into her hands, readied himself and sunk into the seat, waiting. He refused to look at her as she climbed on behind him and the whole ride to her place was tense; she could feel his body locked tight against hers. He sped away from the curb as soon as she put away her items and before she even had the chance to open her mouth to apologize.

Sakura managed to make it into her unit before collapsing to the ground in a great, heaving, sobbing mess.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to post this one early because the last chapter was short, and also I've been really excited to share this one with you. I hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it.  
> Thank you, as always, for your support. Please leave a comment so I know what you thought of this latest chapter.


	14. Chapter 14

The next few weeks passed by in a blur for Sakura. She threw herself into work and barely went to see Mikoto. She knew it was wrong to avoid her, but she also knew the older woman would want answers, and Sakura wasn't ready to tell her anything.

On the rare occasions she bumped into Sasuke, he refused to talk to her. They had gone backwards—again—but she knew she had no one to blame but herself. Sakura was at fault, and this time she didn't know how to fix it. She had tried calling him but he either had his phone constantly turned off or he had blocked her number, because she could never get through.

Tsunade called Sakura into her office one morning and informed her that Mikoto's treatment was going so well that she would only need three lots of treatments. She had just started her third round of chemotherapy, and Sakura was happy for her that it would be the last one. She was so excited that she was halfway through dialing Sasuke's number to rejoice with him when she remembered he wasn't talking to her. Tears filled her eyes and she shoved her phone into her pocket with more force than was necessary.

Sakura wasn't the crying type, but she seemed to be doing a lot of it lately. The thought that Sasuke had given up on her was too much to bear and she rushed out of Tsunade's office and made it to the closest bathroom, sinking onto one of the toilet seats as she let her tears fall. She had waited too long. She had pushed him away so much—telling him she needed more time, that she wasn't ready—and he had moved on. He must have finally realized how incompatible they were together, and she choked out a sob at the thought.

She cried for some time before pulling herself together. If he had given up on her, then she would deal with it. She was a strong woman—she had never needed a man in her life before, so why should she change now? She would pick up her broken heart and get on with life. Besides, she had been the one to make the choice first, so it wasn't like she had the right to cry now.

Sakura made sure she looked presentable before leaving the bathroom and making her way to Mikoto's room. She wanted to congratulate the older woman that she was almost finished with her treatment—that she had beat the cancer. With a hand on the door to Mikoto's room, Sakura took a deep breath before entering. She plastered a huge smile on her face when Mikoto looked at her. "I heard the good news. I'm so happy for you, Mikoto."

"Thank you, dear," she replied. "I'll be glad to finish. The hospital walls get pretty boring after a while."

"I know what you mean. Sometimes I get lost in here since everything looks the same," Sakura laughed.

Mikoto smiled politely at her words before her lips pulled down into a frown. "How are you going, Sakura?" The question was innocent enough, but Sakura squirmed under the older woman's shrewd gaze. _This_ was why Sakura had been avoiding her.

Sakura tried to appear unaffected by the loaded question and shrugged. "Busy. I've taken a few extra shifts lately, and I feel like I'm always here."

"Is that why you don't visit as much anymore?" Mikoto asked. "Because you're busy?"

How was she supposed to reply to that? Mikoto obviously already knew the answer—she seemed to always know what Sakura was thinking and feeling—but Sakura still didn't want to tell her the truth.

She must have taken too long to answer, because Mikoto sighed loudly and said, "Sasuke has also started taking on more shifts at work. It saddens me that he doesn't come to see me nearly as much as he used to."

"I didn't realize that," Sakura whispered, feeling guilty. It was obviously her fault he stayed away from the hospital—from his mother. _He must really hate me now,_ she thought. _If even the thought of seeing me keeps him away._

Mikoto frowned at her. "No, I suppose you wouldn't," she replied. "Sakura, I'm sorry to ask this but—"

Sakura's pager beeped, cutting off Mikoto's question. She was glad for it, since she wasn't ready to answer anything the older Uchiha had to ask. "I'm sorry, Mikoto, but I need to go. Can we finish this later?"

"Of course. I know you're busy." Mikoto gave her another smile, though it didn't reach her eyes. Another stab of guilt sliced its way through Sakura, but she tried to ignore it.

After saying goodbye, Sakura started making her way to the front desk, where she had been called by the nurses. Her mind wandered back to Sasuke, as it always seemed to do when she wasn't concentrating on work, and she wondered how she could apologize to him. Yes, she was a strong, independent woman, but Sakura realized that in this aspect of her life, she didn't want to be. She had never felt so strongly about someone like she did him, and she knew that if she had just let him, he could have made her very happy. Despite knowing that she may be too late, Sakura had to do something. The next time she saw him, she would apologize for being stupid. She would tell him it wasn't him, but it was her own insecurities that held her back. The thought of Sasuke hating her was almost too much to bear, and Sakura hoped that she could make this right.

The nurses were gossiping when Sakura finally reached her destination, but they clammed up when they saw her. She held in a sigh; the nurses were good at their jobs, but they gossiped too much for the Sakura's liking. She was known for chastising them if she caught them speaking about members of the hospital staff or of patients, so they always made sure to stay quiet when she was around.

"What was it you needed, ladies?" she asked after saying a quick hello.

The nurse in front of the desk, a young woman with dark brown hair piled atop her head in a messy bun replied, "I was looking at the information on one of your patients and noticed some of it was missing. Do you remember what you wrote on this part?"

Sakura craned her neck to see the information. Ah, she remembered this patient. She also remembered writing in the information after seeing him. A frown touched her lips; this wasn't the first time information had gone missing. Something must be wrong with the computers and she decided to let Tsunade know that they would need to be checked by a Tech expert.

She dictated to the nurse the information that had disappeared then said goodbye to the women behind the desk. She turned, resolved to find Tsunade and tell her of the technical problems their computers were having before taking her break, when the front doors to the hospital burst open and two paramedics rushed in, pushing a stretcher. Sakura's heart picked up, as it always did when an emergency patient came in, and she rushed to the paramedics' side to help.

When she saw who was on the stretcher, she almost passed out.

.

.

.

Sasuke worked on the Lamborghini Aventador, his usual appreciation for such a vehicle nonexistent. He swore as he lay under the car, working on the piece that had been troubling the owner.

It had been a month since his date with Sakura—because yes, no matter what she said, it had been a date to him—and he still hadn't cooled down. He had blocked her number after she tried calling him the next day, not wanting to be tempted to pick up and listen to her tell him all the reasons she didn't want to be with him. Hell, he practically begged his boss to give him more shifts at work, just so he wouldn't have to see her as much. Sasuke hated that even though she had hurt him, all he wanted to do was be with her. He was a pansy ass, but he couldn't stop thinking about her.

"Sasuke," his boss barked from where he worked on a car nearby. "I can hear your muttering all the way over here. Shut up already."

"Sorry boss," he replied.

Did Sakura really not like him? Sasuke thought they had chemistry. Hell, she was malleable and complying every time he held her, and she kissed him back with as much passion as he kissed her. But what if that was all it was for her—something physical? Did she like him for who he was? Sasuke didn't think that was possible. Sakura was too pure for someone like him, and yet that was one of the things that had attracted him in the first place. The more time he spent with her, the more he realized he needed her. She made him a better person.

He would have swung at Sakon and his gang that night. He would have beat them without remorse and was going to when Sakura stopped him. Not even Naruto could stop him when he was seeing red, but Sakura's light touches and soft words had calmed him, and all he had wanted was to protect her—to get her as far away from those bastards as he could.

Sasuke knew he couldn't keep this up. He needed to talk to her, to have a proper conversation without one of them getting angry and storming off. But just thinking about her rejecting him made him so mad he wanted to punch something. But no, they had to talk this out. If she didn't want to be with him then he would find a way to be okay with that. And if she did want to be with him, well… his pansy ass self might just weep at that.

"Hey Gramps," a voice called into the garage, stilling Sasuke's thoughts as recognition hit him. "We're looking for Sasuke. He here?"

He could stay under the car—it had been jacked enough for him to fit under it but was close enough to the ground still that they wouldn't see him—but Sasuke had never been one to run away. Besides, he had known they would come back for him, which was another reason he had stopped going to the hospital as much. If they had followed him in there and seen Sakura—just the thought of what they could do to her had him burning with anger. Resolved, Sasuke rolled out from under the vehicle at the same time his boss replied with "Who wants to know?".

Sakon's eyes widened in glee when he spotted Sasuke while his little posse of followers behind him sneered. "You gonna run away with your tail between your legs this time, Sasuke?" he jeered.

"Like I'd ever need to run from you lot," he scoffed in reply. "A bunch of pussies, that's what you are."

Ukon sidled up next to his twin, practically snarling. "You're lucky we don't know who the hell your girlfriend is. We were hoping to taunt you with her, but we couldn't find her anywhere."

Rage filled him at the thought of them even trying to find her. "You don't know how lucky you are, then. If you touch even a hair on her head, I will gut each and every one of you."

He noticed his boss heading to the office, and guessed he was about to call the police. Good. He would need to call an ambulance as well, after Sasuke was finished with them.

"You know when you tell me things like that, Sasuke, it just makes me want to do it more." Sakon laughed. "We would tape it too, so you could see just what we did to your precious little princess."

Sasuke roared, charging at them. He knew they had goaded him into coming to them, but he didn't care. He would die before he let them touch her.

Punches flew from every direction. Sasuke snagged Sakon on the chin before rounding on Kidomaru and sinking his fist into the man's gut. A fist landed on Sasuke's cheek and he tasted blood, which only fueled his anger. He was pounded on all sides while he fought back, landing punches on the places he knew would hurt the most.

Pain exploded in his chest and it took a few seconds before he realized what had happened. Sasuke looked down, earning another punch to the face as he stared at the pick lodged in his body. The small, sharp instrument had pierced his skin easily, with only the hilt visible.

Sakon withdrew the weapon and Sasuke staggered backwards, his body quickly growing heavy. Another punch to the face and he fell, crumpling to the floor in a heap. The four men stood above him, kicking and stomping while he fought off the encroaching blackness.

Well, shit. This wasn't good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please don't hate me. DX


	15. Chapter 15

"Sasuke," Sakura whispered in horror, her eyes fixed to the unconscious man in front of her. His beautiful face was covered in bruises and blood covered several cuts on his lips and cheeks. Her eyes trailed down his body and saw blood pooling on his work overalls, right near his heart. Her knees buckled at the sight. "Sasuke!"

"He's unconscious, doctor. He can't hear you," one of the paramedics told her. She followed them down the hall as they made their way to the operating theatre, her gaze unable to leave Sasuke's face. The paramedic glanced up at her. "Do you know him?"

"Yes. He's my… friend." But he wasn't. He was so much more to Sakura than just a _friend._ She held back a sob, as her eyes studied every cut and bruise on his beautiful face. She refused to look at the blood seeping from his chest. It was so close to his heart, but with his baggy work coveralls, she couldn't tell for sure where he had been injured.

"What happened?" she managed to ask, torn between wanting to know every detail and wanting to cover her ears to the information.

"His boss called the police and told them a group of men were harassing his employee. He said paramedics might be needed, so we were dispatched as well. When we got there, this guy," he lifted his in Sasuke's direction, "was on the ground. The police arrested the four men, one of which was still holding a bloody instrument in his hand."

Four men. Surely, it couldn't have been _those_ four men, could it?

Sakura felt tears on her cheeks, but she made no motion to wipe them away. Today was one of his extra shifts—extra shifts he had gotten to stay away from her. If she had tried harder to reconcile with him, he wouldn't have been at work. He wouldn't have gotten injured. The thought made her weak at the knees and she gripped the edge of the stretcher to keep from crumbling to the floor.

They arrived at the doors to the operating theatre, but Sakura refused to let go of the stretcher. The paramedic who had told her what happened spoke up again. "Sorry Doctor, but you can't come past here. Operating doctors only from this point on."

She shook her head, unable to let go. What if this was the last time she saw Sasuke? What if this happened because she didn't do enough to reconcile with him? She had pushed him away so much and now she might never see him again. She may never hear his teasing voice or see his arrogant smirk. A sob worked its way up her throat but she held it in, her eyes locked onto Sasuke's face.

A hand closed over hers and she jerked her head up with a start. Ino stood there, watching her cautiously. "Sakura, let go. You can't do anything for him right now. Let the surgeons do their job."

Sakura's lip quivered as she looked at her best friend. As soon as Ino pried her fingers off the stretcher, the paramedics passed through the operating doors. Sakura's legs finally gave way and she crumbled, Ino catching her under her arms before she fell to the floor.

Ino lowered her onto the ground and Sakura threw her arms around her best friend, the sob finally breaking its way out of her. Ino hugged her back, her hands stroking Sakura's hair soothingly. "He's going to be fine, Sakura. You know our surgeons are the best of the best."

She did know that. But there had been so much blood. The thought had her heart clenching in fear that even their surgeons wouldn't be able to save him. "Ino, I don't" —a lump formed in her throat and Sakura struggled to get the words out.— "I don't know what I'm going to do if he's not okay."

Ino's voice was a quiet whisper when she asked, "Do you love him?"

Sakura couldn't give her a reply. Not because she wasn't sure, but because if she said the words out loud and Sasuke didn't make it, she was afraid her heart wouldn't ever recover.

Sakura finally managed to calm herself enough to push away from her friend. She wiped her arm across her eyes and attempted to give Ino a smile, though she suspected it looked more like a grimace than anything else. "How did you know?"

"I overheard the nurses talking about it," Ino replied, jerking her finger behind her to point at the nurse's station. "They were saying the hot one with a thing for Doctor Haruno was rushed in for emergency surgery."

If the nurses were gossiping again then the whole staff body would know by now. But surely, they wouldn't tell…

Sakura pushed to her feet quickly, a sick feeling sitting in her gut. "I need to see Mikoto. Right now."

Ino stood with her, a hand to Sakura's elbow to steady her swaying. "You're not exactly stable right now. Why don't I go instead? Stay here until you're feeling a little better."

"No. It has to be me." Sakura looked at her best friend, her love for the blonde stronger than ever in that moment. "Thank you for being here for me, Ino. It means a lot."

Ino wiped a tear from Sakura's cheek, a warm smile on her lips. "I'm always here for you, Sakura. You know that."

"I do." Sakura leaned in to hug her, squeezing tight. Then, she took several deep breaths to calm herself before making her way to Mikoto's room, hoping no one had been stupid enough to tell his mother yet.

She got her answer as soon as she saw the older woman's face. They stared at each other for a long moment before Sakura rushed to her side. Tears streamed down Mikoto's cheeks and Sakura couldn't stop her own tears from escaping as they embraced each other.

They held each other for a long time, both giving and receiving comfort simultaneously. Finally, Mikoto pushed away from Sakura and gazed at her with worried eyes. "He's going to be okay, isn't he? Please tell me he'll be okay. I can't lose him too." Her voice broke as she finished speaking and another wave of tears fell from her eyes.

Sakura pulled her into another embrace. Her throat was clogged with emotion, but she managed to say, "He's going to be okay, Mikoto. I promise."

She only wished she believed that.

.

.

.

Sakura thought she was going to be sick when the surgeon relayed Sasuke's injuries to his mother and her. His minor injuries included a broken arm, two cracked ribs and multiple cuts and abrasions on his body from the beating he was given. However, he had been stabbed in the spleen and had almost died from internal bleeding on the operating table. The surgeons had managed to stop the bleeding, though, and informed the two women that he was going to make a full recovery. Both her and Mikoto had burst into another round of tears at the news.

They had taken him to a separate room, since Mikoto's ward was for cancer patients. Sakura knew Mikoto wanted to be with her son, but her treatment left her weak and tired, and Tsunade ordered her to stay in bed, so she wasn't able to visit him.

"Sakura, can you please stay with him?" the older Uchiha asked, her voice hoarse from crying. She looked exhausted and Sakura was glad Tsunade had put her foot down. Mikoto wasn't in any condition to go anywhere right now.

"Of course I will." There was no way Sakura wasn't going to be by his bedside. She needed to make sure he was okay with her own eyes. "Are you going to be all right here by yourself?"

"As long as I know you're with him, dear, I'll be fine."

Sakura leaned down to wrap her arms around Mikoto. "I'll make sure you know as soon as he wakes up, okay?"

Her shift had ended halfway through Sasuke's surgery, but Sakura hadn't wanted to leave Mikoto's side until they heard the results. Now, she took a quick detour to change out of her scrubs before weaving her way through the halls until she found his room. She sunk into the chair by his bedside, her eyes intent on his face. There were so many bruises that she wondered if he would be able to open his eyes at all upon awakening.

His arms were outside the blanket and Sakura took the opportunity to take the one closest to her—the one not in cast—in hand. She entwined their fingers together and leaned forward to press a kiss to his palm. The stress of the day had left her exhausted and she rested her head against the bed, their joined hands tucked against her chest as she drifted off to sleep.

A gentle sensation against her hair woke her and she blinked, staying still as she wondered if she had imagined it. But no, it came again. Light strokes that started from the crown of her head to the middle of her back, tracing the hair that she had taken out of her work ponytail.

Sakura shot up, her eyes immediately filling with tears when she saw Sasuke looking at her with the softest expression. She had been right—one eye was completely shut—but it didn't seem to bother him. "Hey doc," he whispered. He reached his hand to wipe away the tears from her cheeks, which only made her cry harder.

She wanted to throw herself at him. To hug him and kiss him and thank him for being alive. But she held herself back. He had just come out of surgery and she didn't want to hurt him. Instead, she said, "I missed you." The understatement of the century, but she wasn't going to spill her guts to him when he was exhausted and likely wouldn't remember anything after waking up in the morning.

"Yeah?" He tried to smirk but winced at the pain it caused. "Damn, they really did a number on me, didn't they?" But Sakura wasn't in a joking mood. She couldn't take her eyes off him and finally Sasuke huffed out a breath. "Sakura, stop looking at me like I'm going to disappear and just kiss me already."

"I don't want to hurt you," she whispered.

"Doc, you know I'm a sucker for pain. Now c'mere before I go to you."

She couldn't say no. She didn't want to say no. Still, she made sure she was careful when she leaned closer, her lips touching the corner of his mouth softly so as not to hurt his cuts. He grunted and drew his hand to the back of her neck, pulling her mouth more firmly on his.

The kiss was gentle, and not just because of his injuries. Sasuke kissed her slowly, with purpose, and Sakura knew there was no going back to how they used to be. Hell, she couldn't go back even if she wanted to. She never wanted to say no to him again.

She promised herself in that moment that she wouldn't run away anymore, nor would she make excuses as to why they couldn't be together. Whatever Sasuke wanted, she would give him. Sakura didn't want to deny herself the chance of being with him in the present, even if she was scared he might leave her in the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You have no idea how terrified I was of uploading the previous chapter. I was worried people weren't going to like it. Tbh, I'm still worried these next few chapters are going to disappoint my readers (but that's because I want you to love the ending). I have never been more anxious about finishing a story in my life. XD  
> I hope you're still enjoying the story. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. Thank you for reading!


	16. Chapter 16

Sakura spent most of her off time at work by Sasuke's bedside during his recovery. At first, she had tried to split the time between him and Mikoto, but the older woman told her that she was fine, and that Sakura should look after Sasuke instead. So, Sakura found herself with him every chance she got.

He was irritated at first when she tried to look after him, especially when she took to wiping his body with a wet cloth to clean him. He flushed a light pink the first time she asked him to undress for her, and Sakura realized it was from embarrassment that he told her off. He was a man with a lot of pride, and he didn't like looking weak in front of people. But Sakura reasoned with him that he wouldn't be able to have a proper shower for at least a few days, and she wanted to make sure he was comfortable. After her rounds, she would visit him with a bowl of warm water and a cloth and methodically wipe his face, hands, arms and chest. He drew a line at her going further south—his pride rearing its head—and she conceded. She let him do that himself.

"I can do it myself, doc," he huffed on one of her visits.

She was busy wiping his good arm and she took a moment to look at him, noting that his lips were turned down in a pout. She smiled to herself and replied, "I know, but I want to do this." She raised an eyebrow at him. "Do you know how many of my male patients would jump at the chance to be looked after by me?"

He narrowed his eyes at her and for a moment he looked jealous. "You don't though, do you?"

Sakura laughed. "No, of course not. This is normally the nurses' job." She reached over to start on his chest, and a faint blush dusted her cheeks as she worked. He was staring at her intently, his good arm having made its way around her waist to keep her from pulling away.

"In that case, do I get to do the same for you? Tit for tat and all that." A mischievous smirk was on his lips and his hand tugged at her scrubs suggestively.

Her blush heightened at his words. "You forget, Sasuke, but I can shower properly. Besides, what would people think if they walked in to see you… washing me? Your room doesn't have a lock on it."

His smirk only widened, though. "I'd be happy to risk it."

She shook her head with a laugh, swatting his chest with the cloth. "God, you're impossible sometimes, you know that?"

"I'm injured, remember? Don't you want me to recover as quickly as possible?"

"Washing me is not going to help you recover quicker," she said, giving him a stern yet amused look.

His eyes heated and Sakura's gut clenched at the look he sent her. "I disagree." His hand moved up her back to grab her neck and he pulled her closer to his face until their lips were inches apart. "If you're not going to let me reciprocate, then I deserve something else."

Sakura's eyes flickered to his mouth. "I suppose that's only fair," she whispered, her gaze seeking his again.

He hummed in approval. "Very fair." His tongue darted out to lick the seam of her lips and when she gasped at the contact, he pulled her closer for a searing kiss.

Sasuke did that a lot, over the course of his recovery. By the end of the first week, he had started taking more liberties with her than should be allowed. Sakura found herself being tugged towards him on several occasions while she fussed over his health, his mouth claiming hers in kisses that were both demanding and sweet. She wasn't able to tell him no, though, since she enjoyed receiving them just as much as he enjoyed giving them.

When Sasuke was able to get out of bed, Sakura brought him in a wheelchair so she could take him to visit his mother. He resisted at first, apparently not wanting to be pushed around by someone, but Sakura had been stern with him. He relented and they spent a lot of time in Mikoto's room with her after that, Sakura knowing that Sasuke would want to be close to her.

On one of his last days in hospital, after Sakura had wheeled him back to his room and began fussing about to make sure he was comfortable, Sasuke grabbed her hand and pulled her close to where he was sitting. His eyes locked onto hers, dark pools of desire that made Sakura's insides clench, and he released her to rest his palm on the waistband of her scrubs, fingers inching up until they found bare skin.

"Kiss me, Sakura," he whispered in that raspy, sexy voice of his that she knew meant he was turned on.

And of course, she couldn't say no to him. She leaned over him and pressed her lips to his eagerly. She nipped his lower lip and heard his replying groan, which spurned her on. She nipped it a little harder before taking it into her mouth and sucking on it.

He kissed her back fiercely and she gasped when his fingers trailed south, burrowing into her pants to play with the seam of her panties. She broke away from the kiss and stood upright, her eyes locked onto his. Surely, he wouldn't…

Apparently, he would. Without breaking eye contact, his fingers pushed past the barrier of her underwear until he found what he desired. Another gasp escaped her when his fingers touched her soft folds for the first time, and he hummed at finding her already wet for him.

The door to his room opened, and Sakura tried to back away from him, but he refused to release her. Sakura was standing on the side of the bed closest to the window—away from the door—and with the raised bed blocking most of her lower half from the entrance, she knew the nurse wouldn't be able to see what he was doing. Still, the thought of Sasuke touching her with someone else in the room made her cheeks flare, and she did her best to keep her face neutral.

The nurse looked shocked at seeing Sakura and apologized when she saw how close Sakura was standing to him—closer than was professional between doctors and patients. "I'm sorry, Doctor Haruno. I didn't realize you'd be here. I just came to give Sasuke a check-up."

Sasuke's hand continued to play with her leisurely, sliding his fingers across her folds. He pushed a finger through her slick entrance and pressed his thumb against her clit. Sakura swallowed the gasp that threatened to escape, and she fisted her hands into the fabric of her pants to keep from making any kind of noise that would alarm the unsuspecting nurse. She gritted her teeth but attempted a smile. "Thank you, but I'll deal with that."

As soon as the nurse shut the door behind her, Sakura's knees buckled, and she fell against the bed with a groan. "What are you _doing_ , Sasuke?" she managed to hiss.

He smirked, his eyes shining with desire and amusement. "I don't know what you mean."

"Don't play stupid with—ah!" Sasuke inserted a second finger, cutting off her admonishment. He pumped them into her, his thumb unrelenting against her sensitive nub and she moaned into the sheets. He knew when she was close, her inner walls tightening against his fingers, and he pumped faster, lifting his injured arm to drag her face to his for an intense kiss.

Sakura shuddered against him, her head falling to his shoulder as she muffled her cry of pleasure against his skin. His fingers didn't stop until she had finished quivering, and he slowly pulled out of her, dragging his fingers to his lips to taste the liquid coating them.

Despite having just orgasmed, Sakura clenched her thighs together at the look of raw lust in Sasuke's eyes as he tasted her. His hand resting against her nape started kneading the skin there, massaging her with gentle but firm pressure.

"I can't wait to taste you properly, doc," he murmured, taking a finger into his mouth to suck her juices. He licked his lips, his eyes flaring, and Sakura moaned at the thought of him between her thighs.

She tried to lift herself up, since half-leaning against the hospital bed was beginning to get uncomfortable, but Sasuke didn't let her go. Instead, he grabbed her waist and hauled her onto him. "Careful!" she scolded, doing her best to avoid his injuries. "You'll hurt yourself."

He hummed again, a low sound of contentment from deep in his throat as he entwined their fingers together. "It's worth it, if it means getting you into my bed."

Sakura wanted to smack him but held back. She wouldn't want to hurt his injuries, even accidentally. "What if Mikoto walked in and saw us?" she asked, even though she knew Mikoto was still bed-bound.

"She would be thrilled," Sasuke replied with a chuckle. He looked down at their joined hands before grinning at her. "Did you enjoy your punishment, Sakura?"

Her heart faltered in her chest at the sight of his smile, while her eyes widened at his words. "That was punishment?"

"You had it coming for making me wait so long." He sounded smug, but Sakura didn't have the heart to be mad. She had enjoyed the punishment, after all.

She lay there, head against his chest, listening to the steady thrum of his heartbeat until her breathing evened out and she closed her eyes, falling into a blissful sleep.

.

.

.

It was Mikoto's last day in the hospital, and Sakura was excited to be able to take her home. Tsunade had given her the all clear at the end of her third round of treatments, saying she was officially in remission. Of course, she would have to be very careful and make routine checks at the hospital, but for now, she was safe.

It would still take some time before all her strength returned, though. The chemotherapy had exhausted her, and she was thin and frail, but her mind was strong, and she looked forward to recovering her health. Her hair had already started to return, though it was still very short, but Mikoto had seemed to have gotten used to it. She had told Sakura one day that it was proof that she was a survivor, and that she realized she shouldn't be ashamed of it.

Sakura arrived at Sasuke's place in her rattily old Ford, noticing that he was already on the stoop, waiting for her. He had been released from hospital a week ago, but still had his cast on his arm, so he couldn't ride his motorbike yet. Sakura had taken it upon herself to drive him where he needed to go whenever she was free. Once again, he had protested at first—he really did have too much pride—but he begrudgingly relented, much to her satisfaction.

He opened the door and climbed in, careful not to knock his injured arm. "Your car is a piece of crap," he said, by way of greeting.

Sakura sighed. "You've said that before. Multiple times, actually." She turned to him, eyebrow raised. "Hello to you too, by the way."

He grunted in reply before going on a rant about her car. Sakura didn't mind. She had realized that when it came to cars, he could talk for hours without acknowledging anything else. "You need a new one, doc. I don't like how old this one is."

Sakura laughed, already halfway to the hospital, where Mikoto was waiting for them. "I'm pretty sure I've told you already, but I can't really afford another car right now."

"I know people. I can look around and get you a good deal."

She loved that he cared enough to want to help her. If there was one thing she loved most about Sasuke, it was how kindhearted he was, despite his usual surly attitude. "Fine," she conceded. "But you have to tell me before finalizing anything."

"Deal."

His hand reached over to grab hers that was resting on the gearstick and he entwined their fingers together, content with the silence. They hadn't spoken about their relationship status after he had woken up in the hospital. They had gotten a lot closer during his recovery, of course, but neither had even mentioned the words 'relationship' or 'dating'. Sakura knew it was silly, but she had wanted to make sure both he and his mother had made a full recovery before bringing up the subject with him.

They continued the drive in companionable silence and Sakura's mind ticked over. Now that his mother was leaving the hospital, she wondered when they would have that particular conversation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter is a little late. I've been very busy this past week, and haven't even had the time to turn on my laptop.  
> I really hope ya'll enjoyed this chapter. I was thinking about warning you about the smut in this one, but then I thought it might be a nice surprise. I hope it's not too weird or too much for anyone, though. (I'm only new at writing smut, so I'm very nervous about sharing it with people).  
> This story is coming to an end, just to let ya'll know. Thank you for your continued support and encouragement throughout this story, I really appreciate it. :D


	17. Chapter 17

"Freaking Sasuke," Sakura mumbled to herself as she stomped her way up the couple of steps to stop in front of his door. "Always so freaking stubborn."

It was time for Sasuke's cast to come off, and Sakura had called him to set up an appointment at the hospital to get it done. He had refused; instead, telling her he wanted her to take it off at home. She had to sneak out a cast saw in order to do so, knowing that if she was caught, she could get into a lot of trouble.

Why she listened to all his demands, she didn't know. Still, here she was, bag in hand with the necessary instruments. She knocked on the door and waited impatiently with her hand on her hip.

He opened the door, looking breathtaking as usual with his wild raven hair and pierced brow. He smirked at her, reaching out to tug her inside without even a "Hello".

Sakura looked around, noting Mikoto's absence. "Where's your mum?"

"Sleeping. She's still tired a lot."

Sakura noted his furrowed brow and smiled, reaching out to squeeze his hand comfortingly. "That's normal. It'll take her some time to get her strength back to the way it was before she got sick." She lifted her medical bag and waved it a little to get his attention. "Where do you want to do this? I hope you know that I can get in big trouble if they find out I took hospital property home with me."

She followed him as he made his way down the hall, opening the door to what she realized was his bedroom. "And yet you didn't complain when I asked you to do it here," he replied, a smug smile on his face.

"I did complain. _You_ just didn't listen." Sakura looked around the bedroom with a frown. "You sure you want to do it here? The cast will make a mess when I cut it off. It'd be better at the dining table."

"It's fine. It can be vacuumed later." He sat on his bed and held out his injured arm, waiting.

Sakura sighed. "We'll need to do it on the floor. The cast needs to be on a hard surface so I can saw it off."

He moved to the ground, sitting cross legged as he watched Sakura set up her makeshift hospital room. She located a power point and plugged in the cord for the saw before sitting next to him on the side closest to his cast.

"You'll feel pressure, but it won't hurt," she told him.

It didn't take long before the cast was off. His skin beneath was pink and raw, having been confined for so long, and Sakura fished inside her bag until she pulled out some cleaning wipes. She held out her hand and helped him up, then sat across from him on the bed, in order to be more comfortable. She placed his arm in her lap, cleaning it with gentle strokes.

"You'll have to be careful with this arm for a few days," she informed him. "That means no overdoing it at work or with your motorbike until it's back to normal." She glanced up, only to see him staring down at her with hungry eyes.

"Do all your patients get this sort of treatment, doc?" Sasuke asked, his voice husky. "Or am I a special case?"

Her toes curled at the sound of his voice and the look in his eyes, but she managed to come across unaffected. She sent him a teasing grin. "You're definitely a special case."

She looked back at her job at hand, eyes focused on wiping away the built-up sweat and dirt. She started telling him how he would need to care for his arm until it was completely healed, but her words were cut short when he lunged for her, pressing her into the bed beneath him and catching her lips with his.

Sakura was startled and she pushed him back enough to send him a glare. "What did I _just_ say, Sasuke? You need to be careful with—" He cut her off again, his mouth devouring hers like he was a man starving.

It was difficult to think straight with his intoxicating kisses and the feel of his body on hers. When he pressed further against her and she felt all of him, she gasped, breaking the kiss. A growl rumbled in his throat and he caught her lips again, refusing to let them go.

He started tugging at the bottom of her shirt, untucking it from her jeans to pull over her head. When he reached down to rip his own shirt off, Sakura stilled him. "Careful. Don't be so rough with your arm, Sasuke."

The look he sent her was full of impatient desire. "I'm not fragile, doc."

"No, but right now your arm is. Indulge me, please, unless you want me to get angry." Her medical training couldn't be overridden by the desire coursing through her, and she wanted to make sure he didn't do even more injury to himself.

Sasuke's eyes flashed, as though the thought of her getting angry appealed to him, but he lowered his arms from his shirt and sat back. Sakura pushed up so she was sitting in front of him and reached down to tug his shirt over his head carefully. A bonus that came from her undressing him was that she was able to gaze at his hard body as his shirt came off. Her eyes drank in every piece of flesh that was uncovered—from his snail trail leading up to his navel, to his well-defined pecks.

The ink on his skin fascinated her, the leaves of the oak tree fanning the left side of his chest, over his heart. She had asked about it once, and he told her it was his family tree, starting from the line of his great grandparents. She could see now the names marked on each branch, as well as extra branches next to and below his name, where his future family members would go.

When his shirt was off, he pushed her into the bed again, kissing her like the short time apart had been torturous. Her hands were greedy as she touched him, and soon the rest of their clothes were off, thrown somewhere in the corners of his room.

"Sakura," he whispered from above her, his voice strained. "I can't wait."

She nodded in understanding. This had been a long time coming and they were both desperate to feel each other—to be part of each other.

Sasuke reached for his dresser beside the bed and grabbed a condom, ripping the packet with his teeth. His hands shook as he rolled it onto his shaft, and then he was spread out above her again, his eyes drinking her in. He nudged her thighs aside and she opened for him, wet and ready as she waited in breathless anticipation.

He pushed into her slowly until he was buried to the hilt. They groaned together at the feeling of being connected and Sasuke leaned up again to stare at her, giving her time to adjust to him. His eyes roamed her face before trailing down her body, to where they were connected. On his way back up, they paused at her breasts, his eyes flaring with a new wave of desire, and her nipples tightened in response.

Sakura had always been self-conscious of her small breasts, and Sasuke had even pointed out on their first meeting that they weren't much to look at. But he stared at them now as though he could devour them by his eyes alone. It made her feel beautiful—powerful, even—and she leaned up to wrap her arms around his neck, bringing his mouth close to hers.

"Make love to me, Sasuke," she whispered against his lips, surprised by the emotion suddenly clogging her throat.

He obeyed, withdrawing until just the tip of him remained in her before thrusting back in. Sakura moaned in pleasure, throwing her head back against the pillows. Sasuke grunted and his lips latched onto her neck; kissing, sucking, and biting the sensitive flesh beneath her ear.

It didn't take long before Sakura felt her body start tingling, the pressure building before she would explode. She matched his thrusts with her hips, needing more. She panted, told him to go faster, and he complied, his hips slamming into hers with each thrust. Sakura wrapped her legs around his hips, digging her heels into his backside in order to feel as much of him inside her as she could.

His hand reached between them, moving down her body to tweak her engorged clit. That was all it took to break her, and the next instant she was screaming against his shoulder, her nails digging into his back, and she swore that for a few moments she could see stars.

Sasuke's release followed soon after. He pumped into her three more times before he stiffened, his face falling forward to bury in her neck. He bit her, muffling his groans as he came, and the pleasure of his teeth against her skin prolonged her own orgasm.

His weight was crushing on top of her, but Sakura didn't tell him to move. It felt right having him there and she wanted to stay like that, content and safe in his embrace. When he moved to pull away, her legs tightened around him, keeping him sheathed inside. She wasn't ready to let him leave her yet, and she told him so.

Sasuke chuckled. "That's fine by me, doc, but I'd rather not crush you to death."

He rolled them over, so that she was lying on him and Sakura leaned down to rub her nose against his, her smile lighting up her face. He returned the smile and tipped his head back to lay a kiss to the tip of her nose. His arms remained locked around her and his wayward fingers caressed every inch of her back, from neck to buttocks.

"Be mine, Sakura," he growled, nuzzling into her neck and nipping at her skin.

She laughed at his words, so few yet so deep with meaning. "Is that your way of saying you're ready for round two, or are you telling me to be your girlfriend?" She felt him harden again inside her at her words and she moaned, unable to repress it.

Languidly, he moved his hips against hers. "Both."

Sakura leaned down to plant a sweet kiss to his lips. "Yes," she replied, knowing he would understand her double meaning.

She didn't know why it had taken her so long—she must have been out of her mind—because suddenly Sakura couldn't see it any other way. His near-death experience had taught her that life is fleeting. Sure, she should have known that already, being a doctor and all, but it was different when it involved a life that she, personally, cared about, and she refused to waste any more time. If, in the future, he grew bored of her, then she would deal with it. But she didn't want to deprive herself of loving him just because of her fears.

Sasuke lifted her off him, quieting her protests with a kiss. He retrieved another condom, discarding the old one before rolling the new one on, and then sat her back down to rest against his thighs. "You ever been a cowgirl, doc?"

A wicked grin crossed Sakura's face as the meaning of his words registered. "I don't believe I have. But there's a first time for everything." She lifted herself up, hands braced on his chest, before lowering herself onto his stiffened cock.

In that moment, they were complete. They weren't two people struggling to survive in the harsh and unforgiving world around them, but they were one entity, full of love and hope for a better future. Together. And as they pushed each other to new heights, Sakura knew that there was nowhere else in the world she would rather be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm fairly new when it comes to writing smut, so I'm still pretty insecure about sharing it with others, but I hope it was decent enough.   
> There's one more chapter remaining, so please stay tuned for that. As always, thank you for reading. I've really enjoyed sharing this story with you. (and I'm so glad to be finally finishing it, since I started it in 2014).


	18. Epilogue

Lazy fingers trailed a line across the planes of Sasuke's chest, circling around his nipples before darting lower to tickle his abdomen. Sakura turned her head to kiss his chest before locking eyes with him, a sated grin on her lips. "Happy first anniversary."

And what an anniversary it had been. To start the day, Sasuke had taken her out to breakfast, gifting her with a pair of incredibly beautiful emerald earrings. After they returned to Sakura's apartment, she had given him his gift—her. She instructed him to wait in the kitchen while she fetched his present, only to emerge from her room a short time later wearing nothing but a bow around her neck. His eyes heated instantly, and he growled his approval before pouncing on her right there in the living room. It had taken a long time before they managed to make it to the bedroom.

She had another present for him, of course, despite him insisting that he didn't need anything. Sakura had heard that there would be a Formula One race in a couple of weeks, so she bought two tickets, knowing how much he would enjoy himself. The tickets cost almost a month's worth of wages, but it was worth it, knowing how happy the day out would make him. She would wait for later to give them to him, though, since she didn't want to leave the comfort of his embrace just yet.

Sasuke's fingers were kneading the back of her neck, loosening the tension that was there. He had started doing that a lot after realizing how tightly wound her job made her, and she loved it. Sakura leaned into his touch—if she was a cat, she would be purring.

They were quiet for a long time, Sakura almost having fallen asleep when Sasuke said, "Move in with me."

Her eyes popped open and she pushed herself off his body to stare at him. "What?"

"Move in with me, Sakura," he repeated. "I want to live together."

"What about your mother? I can't take you away from her."

"Mum will still be there, of course. Technically, you'll be moving in with both of us."

Sakura didn't mind, but she wasn't sure how Mikoto would feel about that situation. She was a grown woman—she needed her own space. "How does Mikoto feel about that? Will I get in the way?

Sasuke sighed, giving her a stern look before pulling her against his chest again. "If you're going to keep making excuses, we should just get married. That way you'll have no choice but to live with me."

She couldn't help but laugh at his logic and she tilted her head back to stare into his eyes. "Are you really going to propose just to get me to live in the same house as you?"

"I'm going to marry you anyway, so why not?" he replied, his eyes serious as they gazed back at her.

Her heart was flooded with affection from his words and she gave him a teasing smile. "What if I was expecting some over-the-top romantic proposal, huh?"

Sasuke's pierced brow lifted and he looked at her like she was insane. "Who do you think you're dating, doc? Did you really expect something romantic from me?"

Sakura laughed with a shake of her head. She decided not to remind him about what he had given her at breakfast—to her, that had been romantic. "No, I guess not." She kissed him softly before leaning away. "You know I'd say yes no matter how you asked me, right? I love you and that's all that matters to me."

His eyes bore into hers, full of passion and love and satisfaction. He pulled her in for a toe-curling kiss before letting go and rolling away from her. Sakura watched him as he leaned over the bed, his ass on full display and she shamelessly eyed it while he rummaged through his bedside table. After a few seconds of fiddling and grumbling, he rolled back to her, procuring a small box.

"Naruto said I should take you somewhere special, like a waterfall or the beach or something," he said, his voice quiet and eyebrows furrowed as he stared at the box.

Was he worried he hadn't proposed properly, despite his previous words? Sakura grasped his face in her hands and sent him a loving smile. "Screw Naruto."

"I'd rather screw you," he replied, his voice turning husky again. Sakura saw his cock harden and her own libido tightened in response.

"I want to make sure with Mikoto that she is okay with this, first," Sakura told him, trying to keep her mind clear for the moment. "I know she cares about me, but this is a big step. I don't want to intrude on her personal space."

"I've already asked her. She's fine with it—thrilled, actually. She's been the one hassling me to pop the question for months."

Of course she had. Sweet, kind, selfless Mikoto who always thought of others before herself. Sakura teared up, thinking about how she had lucked out with the most incredible man and the best future mother-in-law she could possibly ask for.

Sasuke kissed her, his thumbs wiping her tears before they could fall to her chin. He opened the box and took her left hand, sliding the emerald encrusted gold ring onto her finger. Sakura half laughed, half sobbed and held up her hand to inspect it. "You do realize you've made it impossible to top your next anniversary gift? Two presents in one day—you'll be scrambling next year."

He pulled her close to him, leaning against the pillows and resting her head on his chest. "I always have my body I can gift you with," he joked.

Sakura hummed approvingly, her fingers beginning to trace the lines of his chest once more. "That would work."

Sasuke's hand trailed a teasing line down her body before curling around the pink hairs near her pelvis. "You ready for another round, Mrs. Uchiha?" he asked, fingers delving between her slick folds.

She pushed against his hand, moaning at the contact. Leaning up, Sakura kissed his chin, enjoying the feel of stubble against her skin. "I'm ready when you are, Darling."

.

.

.

"You're a doctor. Shouldn't you be used to needles?"

Sasuke watched in amusement as his fiancée's face continued to pale at the needle the tattoo artist was fiddling with in preparation. She pried her eyes away from the contraption just long enough to glare at him. "I am _fine_ with needles, thank you very much. I just don't like the idea of getting jabbed with one for recreational purposes. It hurts, doesn't it?"

He enjoyed the worry in her eyes, realizing her concern was for him and not because she had a weak stomach. He rested his arms behind his head, a smirk on his lips as he gazed into her emerald eyes. "If you're worried, doc, feel free to kiss me to distract me from the pain."

"Why did you want me here anyway?" she asked with a huff, though a smile had found its way to her face. God, he loved it when she smiled.

She eyed his bare torso, lying flat on the table ready for the tattoo artist to work his magic. The slow perusal of her gaze on his body had his groin tightening and he had to fight back a groan when her eyes returned to his, her own having darkened with desire.

He took a deep breath, trying to keep his tone light. "I'm about to mark my body with your name, doc. I thought you might want to see it."

"I do." She took the seat by his head and kissed him. When she pulled away, she looked amused. "I'm a bit worried what name you're going to choose to use, though. You're not going to just have 'Doc' written there, will you? Or maybe 'Doc Uchiha'."

He grinned, the idea too amusing to ignore. "Now that you mention it, maybe I should."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "I would love to see you regret that decision after the amusement wears off."

The tattoo artist finished his preparations—or maybe he was just waiting for them to shut up. He turned to them, needle in hand, and Sakura paled again. Sasuke caught her hand in one of his, bringing it close to his lips and kissing her knuckles. "It's fine, Sakura. I've done this a thousand times."

"Maybe you need to kiss me as a distraction," she mumbled, eyeing the needle with apprehension.

Sasuke tugged on her hand and she leaned closer, resting her face near his. "I wouldn't be opposed to that."

"You two ready?" the tattoo artist asked, an exasperated expression on his face.

"Ready?" Sasuke asked her. "You know you're not allowed to leave after this. Once your name is on my body, you'll be mine forever, Sakura."

"I would be yours forever with or without my name carved into your skin, Sasuke." She touched his cheek tenderly and Sasuke had to fight the desire to press against it like a cat.

Sasuke loved the way she touched him, like he was the most precious thing in her life. He also knew it was sappy as hell to think like that, but he didn't care. His life hadn't been all sunshine and roses—some of that due to his own decisions—and he hadn't thought he would ever get to feel this kind of love with someone. But damn, was he glad he had been wrong.

The needle began to buzz and Sasuke knew he would soon feel the lick of pain that accompanied it once it pierced his skin. He reached up, grabbing Sakura by the back of her neck, and pulling her close to his face. "Distract me," he whispered, his lips touching hers the same moment the needle breached his skin.

It hurt—of course it did, he was human after all—but he barely registered the pain with the distraction of his fiancée's pretty pink mouth on his. Before too long the procedure was finished, and the tattoo artist began cleaning and dressing the skin.

He would have to wait a couple of days before he could take the dressing off and see Sakura's name on his skin for the first time. Just the thought of her name on his body had him wanting to grin like an idiot, and he didn't even care who saw. He had never been this happy before.

It had taken a long time, but finally Sakura was his. Soon—in only a few short weeks—they would tie the knot as husband and wife, becoming one flesh. The thought didn't scare him like it used to when he had been younger. Instead, the thought of living with the woman he loved until they grew old and grey filled him with intense contentment and joy.

Sakura rubbed her hand up his arm, bringing his attention back to her. She cocked her head, her eyes warm and questioning. "What are you thinking?"

"I was thinking about how much I love you," he replied, sitting up from the table and drawing her in for a quick kiss.

"Are you getting emotional on me, Mr. Uchiha?" Her words were teasing, but he could see the tears shining in her eyes.

He grunted in response, pecking her lips again. "Don't get used to it."

She grinned and held out her hand, helping him off the table. "I wouldn't dare."

They left the tattoo parlor and made their way to Sakura's vehicle, a small Mazda 2 that was only a few years old. Sasuke had searched long and hard for a decent car for her before finding it. He would have preferred to get her something a bit larger, since they were safer, but she preferred smaller vehicles. He had made a deal with the old owner and had fixed up some issues before presenting it to her. She was mad, since he hadn't checked with her first, but he knew she loved it.

Looking at Sakura now, with her long pink hair flowing down her back while her emerald eyes glanced up at him with enough love and adoration to leave him breathless, Sasuke knew he would never tire of her. She was everything he could have ever wanted—strong, smart, funny, caring, kind—and he looked forward to starting the next chapter of their lives together.

"You're giving me that look again," she teased, her eyes dancing with amusement from where she stood on the other side of the car.

"What look?"

"The look where you're contemplating whether you'd rather wrap me up in silk or handcuff me to the bed." The look in her eye told him which she would rather him do, and his groin tightened in response. "What are you smiling about?"

Sasuke replied instantly, his eyes never leaving hers. "I'm happy."

And he was. More than he ever thought possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The End.  
> I can't believe it's finally finished! I want to thank each and every person who followed this story, and to those who took time to comment and give me encouragement to keep going. I appreciate all of you and I assure you that this story could never have been finished without your enthusiasm.  
> Please leave a comment/review about the story. I would love to hear from everyone, especially now that the story has come to an end. Once again, thank you for being part of this story with me, and I hope to see you in future stories too.


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